To mow...or not to mow

[Moparguy392]

I am 73 and DW is 72. We still mow our 4628sq ft yard weekly. We have a walkout so there are steep sides. We try do it on relatively cool days but this time of year in the mid west it is not always possible. It is not enjoyable for me but DW doesn't seem to mind. Tried several lawn services over the years but not really satisfied with results. I know we will have to give it up some day and just be satisfied with whatever lawn service we land on.

Wondering if you still mow or just concrete over it.

 

[pb4uski]

We still mow. Our lot is all riding lawnmower so it is pretty easy.

We have my Mom's place down the street done by a service and they do a good job. $35 a pop IIRC.

 

[MarieIG]

DH or DS (who lives with us at this time) mow. I suppose eventually DH will no longer be able to mow, but he shows no sign of slowing down right now. (He was running around yesterday buying parts for - and fixing - the mower and weed wacker.)

I don't mow and have no intention of starting.

 

[athena53]

I'm 70 and also have a walkout built into the side of a hill. A good deal of the back yard is garden (that's more work! ) and it takes me about 45 minutes to mow. Yeah, it's VERY hard work right now, but it's cardio work and calorie burn and it's not overdoing it- average heart rate yesterday even in the onerous heat was 120, max 130. I came in and rested between the front and back yards!

What's in the back of my mind is that if the lawn mower dies (it's 8+ years old) and is too expensive to repair I may break down and hire out the work. There's a local firm that's reliable that I use for chemical applications and for mowing when I'm on extended trips.

The garden is another matter. I hesitate to pay someone to keep the weeds down with poison (it drains down into the lake behind the house) and mulching would be prohibitive and endless since weeds always find their way through again. Honestly, when the garden is too much for me I may end up moving. I will truly miss this house, though.

 

[aaronc879]

We still mow. Our lot is all riding lawnmower so it is pretty easy.

We have my Mom's place down the street done by a service and they do a good job. $35 a pop IIRC.

Wow, $35 per mow? Around here it is twice that at least which is why I reluctantly still do it myself despite the pain it causes.

 

[MC Rider]

I am glad we have a few trees and bushes, and a whole lot of dirt and rocks, but zero lawn. What grass and weeds do pop up can be weed whacked. I was so happy to sidewalk mart that old mower when we moved. It was gone immediately.

 

[street]

To mow...or not to mow?

Keep on mowing it is good for both of you in so many ways. I know a guy that is mid 90's and still mows his small yard. I think it is so great that he still does it and healthy for him also.

 

[aaronc879]

There have been a few 70+ year olds in my neighborhood including a couple women who mowed their own lawns with a regular walk behind mower but I think they did it largely out of financial necessity like me. If I had the money I would pay someone to do it but I don't care that much about the quality like the OP seems to.

 

[athena53]

If I had the money I would pay someone to do it but I don't care that much about the quality like the OP seems to.

Fortunately I can if I have to- I'd just rather spend the $$ on airfares. The firm I'd use charges $65.

 

[Car-Guy]

Robo Mower

 

[Montecfo]

I mow mine. I could afford to hire it out. Just kind of like it plus good exercise. My arthritic ankle may put an end to it. Regular walk behind mower, not self propelled.

 

[MC Rider]

Robo Mower

If it can take out 1-2 foot weeds on a rocky slope of swag 80% it might be sold!

 

[ERD50]

4628 sq ft is just 1/10th of an acre. -ERD50

 

[Zathras]

We mow about once a month.
Most of our yard is rain gardens. What turf we have is a Fescue mix which is drought tolerant and requires very little mowing.
With thee small amount of turf and the infrequency of the mowing, we expect to keep mowing ourselves for quite some time.

 

[Gumby]

We have 1/3 acre that I still mow with a push mower. It takes about an hour to do the whole thing and is a good workout. I skip my walk on days I mow. Luckily for me, it is perfectly flat. I try to mow in the morning before it gets too hot.

 

[COcheesehead]

When we built our new house we xeriscaped all of it. We live in a dry environment so it just made sense. We installed a drip system so we have plants, but other than an occasional trim or two, they are on their own. We have large rocks native to the property, an outdoor sculpture. It looks great. Best thing is I do almost no maintenance on it.

 

[jollystomper]

Our property is just over an acre and I still mow at age 65. Most of the time it is with a riding mower, but if I want good exercise I will use a push mower. It takes about 90 minutes with a riding mower and closer to 3 hours with a push mower. I usually mow early in the morning (houses are far enough apart so that starting at 8AM does not disturb anyone) or a couple of hours before sunset.

I asked for mowing service quotes back around 2018 or 2019, and the cost for mowing April-September was the equivalent of buying a low-end riding mower (which I have) every 1.5 years. I have decided to hold off for as long as possible. I have already discussed with DW about her hiring a lawn service should I die first, before she downsizes to another home. This is what one neighbor has done after her husband died (he mowed their lawn with a riding mower through the fall before he died over the winter at age 82).

 

[5Miler]

70 years old myself and it never occurred to me to quit mowing my yard. I did break down last year and bought a battery powered mower which is so light it's hardly a chore to push it around the yard. (No self-propelled here).

 

[W2R]

I stopped mowing at age 55, and have never regretted it for even one minute. I've got nothing to prove to anybody! And I now have my weekends back!

 

[athena53]

70 years old myself and it never occurred to me to quit mowing my yard. I did break down last year and bought a battery powered mower which is so light it's hardly a chore to push it around the yard. (No self-propelled here).

That may be an option for me. I'd had some electric cord models but dragging the cord around is a pain and they didn't last long. The handle on one caught fire! My current mower, a gas-powered one, is pretty darn heavy and switching to a lightweight battery-operated version would help.

 

[Toast]

We mow and edge our 1/3 acre lot weekly year round. As others have mentioned, it’s good exercise.

 

[2017ish]

We travel too much to mow our own "lawn" (about 5 acres with a steep earthen dam on part of it);even when working, the cost of a good zero turn mower and our irregular hours made us hire it out.

But, I do all the line trimming myself, as well as cut the other ~20 acres a couple times a year with my 1968 vintage tractor.

(Age 63 now)

 

[6miths]

Only 62 and still push mow my place, mom's place and cottage 7 months a year. No self propelled mowers and occasionally pull out the reel mower for fun at cottage which it is mainly flat. Home is 1/3 acre of grass (agree much less work than the gardens) and pretty hilly. Relaxing and a decent work out. Hope to be doing it for quite a few more years.

 

[Act2]

I can’t mow - grass allergies make grass cutting impossible. I gave it a try years back but after a few times, much medication and misery, I gave it up forever. I paid what I had to to not mow. Now I’m in a condo situation where I have no lawn maintenance obligations, so that’s nice.

 

[audreyh1]

When we went full time RV that was it for mowing. When we bought another house lawn service was fortunately included in our HOA dues.