The Old Coot teaches etiquette.
By Merlin Lessler
This is Old Coot article # 1,138. It’s the first time
I’ve written about lawn care etiquette. But the time has come.
Etiquette #1. I bring home chunks of wadded up, soggy,
freshly mown grass about every time I take a stroll through town. From people
who spew lawn clippings all over the sidewalk and leave them there! All it
takes, is to run the mower down the sidewalk and back – Presto! No grass left
to be tracked home by the rest of us.
Etiquette #2. Stop! Hold your horses for a few short
moments when you are mowing anywhere near someone on the sidewalk. That
rotating blade is a lethal, projectile launching machine. My neighbor had her
shoulder blown apart from a piece of bone a dog left on the lawn; it was hurled
from a mower her husband was operating thirty feet from her. Dog bone, rock,
tree root, it could be anything hidden in the grass. The tip of that mower is a
powerhouse, with a tip speed of 130 to 270 miles per hour. It’s a serious
threat to someone walking by or a child playing in the yard. So, when someone
is near, take a pause, stand still. You don’t even have to shut off your mower.
Do the same thing with a leaf blower. You’ll almost always get a thank you wave
from a sidewalk traveler.
Etiquette # 3. Mow before your yard looks like a cow
pasture. Enough said.
Etiquette #4. Every once in a while, take a look at those
shrubs growing alongside your sidewalk, to see if the branches project into the
walking space. If you don’t, they will infringe into the pedestrian lane. It’s
no fun pawing through shrubs and branches and getting a slap in the face or a
sharp stick in the eye. I’ve trimmed a few bushes that were out of control for months
that the owner never did anything about. I’ve had one sharp stick in the eye; I
don’t ever want to go through that again. And I don’t want to carry snippers
with me when I take a walk.
In summary, blow the grass off the sidewalk – stop when
people are near – don’t create a cow pasture – trim the shrubs. It’s just plain,
simple lawn care etiquette.
Send comments or complaints to the paper, or to
mlessler7@gmail.com
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