So I fired up our 3 Lawn Mowers Today...

With the warmer Spring weather, the grass is really starting to grow in our yard. I heard the roar of the zero-turn radius lawnmower as my neighbor fired his up and quickly mowed his lawn to Country Club Golf Course-like specifications.  This only highlighted my unkempt, unruly winter weed/clover yard accented with live oak leaves strewn about as contrasted to his.  (You can see his yard in the upper right hand side of the photo below)  So I fired up my three lawnmowers as well...

3 Lawn Mowers/Weed eaters gettin' the job done

Our mowers don't need gas - they produce it.  In order to get them mowing down this portion of the yard, I set up a temporary paddock using some electric wire that I unrolled and place on some step-in posts.  I then went and got our solar power electric fence charger and hooked up the hot wire to the fence and the ground wire to a stake.  I then used a tester (hanging) to ensure that the fence was 'hot' and it was. Then I went and retrieved Daisy, Rosie and Maggie, our 3 lawnmowers who were all too happy to mow down the grass and clover in the paddock.

The Electric Fence set-up

Although Daisy doesn't smile as humans smile and actually always has a long face, I think she was happy to get in there and eat up the clover.  She was the first one in the paddock and ate the best, most succulent clover before I introduced Rosie and Maggie to the paddock.

Daisy in the clover patch

While they ate in the yard, the other animals left in the pasture bemoaned the fact that they were left behind, because the grass in the pasture is slower coming in.

Eating her fill

White Dutch Clover is a favorite of our cows and they'll pass up other items in the salad bar to go park themselves smack dab in the middle of a clover patch and eat.

Cleaning up the Clover

Now while they ate, I worked in the garden, BUT I kept a sharp eye on them.  I learned a lesson the hard way that when our cows finish eating all the grass and clover in a particular paddock, they'll start looking at the grass on the other side of the fence.  Whereas before, it was heads-down eating, now that they've eaten all the grass, they're ready to roam to find greener pastures and they will run right through that hot wire.  

When you see a scene like below, you want to quickly go retrieve the cows and put them back in the pasture or they'll be running down the road, being honked at by passing motorists as they seek out other grass to eat. If it sounds like I learned this lesson by experience, it is because I have. 

The 'After' Shot

Notice the difference between the first picture in this blog entry and the last.  Daisy, Rosie and Maggie have really done a good job mowing the yard.  Our yard crew is second to none!  Now I'll take down the fence, mow the leaves into a row, rake up the leaves and put them in the garden for mulch and to be composted.