Solitary chicken - need advice

[dancing cloud]

The field has finally been reduced (by others) to something that doesn't resemble a jungle and I'd like to keep it that way. I was hoping the current workforce might be able to come in twice a year to mow it, but they're not very reliable about turning up and have not mowed to a particularly good finish, though they have dealt very well with the brambles/nettles/thistles and other thorny nasties. I definitely want a field, not a bowling green, but I would like to walk through it without needing protective clothing!

 

If I'm going to keep it decent myself, it'll have to be with a ride-on mower or tractor and I'd appreciate any recommendations or words of warning. The field is just under an acre of scrubby grass with lots of thorny stuff, not hugely bumpy or rocky and very few trees to avoid, but it does slope considerably from one side to the other and front to back, and has an area of steeper bank.

 

There a couple of places locally that are Mountfield dealers that I can go and talk to, but I would really appreciate independent advice as opposed to a sales pitch and I know I can rely on my fellow Omleteers to tell it like it is

[Eggasperated]

We have an acre of rough grass and use one of these, not a sit on mower as our ground is quite bumpy (having been ploughed many years before we moved here). We have tamed a lot of brambles, wild raspberries and nettles with this and the field is now a mix of grass and wild flowers, well weeds really , but it looks a lot better.

[Cat tails]

Get a goat?

[dancing cloud]

I wanted a goat (or two) but had to enter into a non-proliferation policy on animals when I moved back home to my dad . Might be difficult to find anywhere locally to look after 3 dogs, 2 cats, 2 chooks and anything else should we wish to be elsewhere at any point!

 

Like the look of the brushcutter beastie, but I'm not sure we're up to pushing it uphill. I was looking at something like this:-

 

http://www.mountfieldlawnmowers.co.uk/ride-on-mowers/tractor-mowers/featured/1538m-sd-98cm-lawn-tractor.html

 

The mulching option looked useful, as I think we may otherwise overfill the brown bin !

[Daphne]

I have a hate-hate relationship with ride-ons, I've had bad luck with them. We only have 1/4 acre and it is flat, but it is ex-pasture with a wide range of very tough and fast growing grasses. With the hens its also full of pot holes Anyway, my very very strong advice is to go for the most powerful motor you can afford, and pay attention to the grass collecting chute or other mechanism. With our wet clay soil and long wet grass I found the chute gets clogged with monotonous regularity which makes cutting a complete pain as I stop, stick my arm up it, pull out wads of straggly grass, get filthy and furious and repeat 20 minutes later . I rarely collected as I went (I found the grass box a real struggle to get on/off and heavy to carry) but would be reduced to manually collecting the (hopefully dry) mulchings a few days later as they were too many to leave lying around.

 

We had a Lawnflite (I have to say it looks remarkably like the Mountfield link. It was cheap, about £1k, and completely useless, the drive belt kept slipping as it was not strong enough for the task) followed by a Hayter (a model which I see is discontinued) which had a much bigger engine (11HP Briggs & Stratton) but suffered from the grass chute problem and I got a flat tyre on about its second outing, and all in all I didn't enjoy using it. Now I'd go for the biggest and most expensive one I could afford, and I'd talk to a range of dealers. I remember the first time being keen on a John Deere, but was scared off by the price and the fact that it seemed like agricultural machinery, not something for a semi-rural back garden. But your situation is different, you have a tougher physical situation. I also think you need professional advice on the slope issue as safety is key.

[Old Speckled Hen]

We have three acres which we are slowly returning to natural hay meadow which entails mowing twice a year and removing the cutting. We have a Kubota which is rugged, reliable and not only does it collect what you've cut but will work without collecting and will pick up the cut grass a few days later when the wild flower seeds have tipped out onto the ground. Have a look at their range?

It also sits a small boy or a collie in front of the operator

[Redwing]

My recommendation would be to buy the very best secondhand one you can afford and get it checked over and serviced before using it. I dont think for £1500 you will get anything capable for your situation

 

We have a very powerful Hayter which copes will dips and ruts and slight slopes easily as well as thistles, nettles and long grass but even that wouldnt cope very well with brambles

 

i think you'll find it tricky to get something that does all what you need unless you get something with a flail mower attachment

[newcountrygirl]

We have 3 acres and have a Countax ride on mower/mulcher. It does the job very well. The mulcher means it spreads out the cuttings finely. We also managed to get hold of a grass collector which we put on it on the garden areas. They are quite pricey - ours was just short of $4000 3 years ago but it is very good.

[dancing cloud]

Thank you so much for all your recommendations.

 

Now that the field has had its first cut in very many years, it does look like a real field and not so much like a derelict wasteland . Whatever we buy will have to cope with young brambles, nettles and ash trees, just to keep them under control, and I'm quite happy to leave edges and corners to give the wildlife some cover and produce a blackberry crop.

 

From what you have all said, it seems we should be buying the best and most powerful beastie we can afford, either new or secondhand if we can find one, rather than settling for the cheapest we can find. Buy well and buy once - sounds like very good advice to me.

 

I'll keep you posted as to how we get on.

[Valkyrie]

Good luck - this is really handy for future requirements on our part too! Thanks for asking the question and thanks to the responses to it. I think this is the part that Murray would enjoy most! After seeing Shaun on Redders one - well, the day is coming.

[Redwing]

Good luck - this is really handy for future requirements on our part too! Thanks for asking the question and thanks to the responses to it. I think this is the part that Murray would enjoy most! After seeing Shaun on Redders one - well, the day is coming.

 

Shaun was lucky to get Ian off it, I can set Ian off on it and not see him all weekend

[cloud]

@redwing - Ian can come and cut our lawn if he's running out of thing to mow

[Valkyrie]

Boys and their toys eh? The look on Shaun's face was brilliant - he was beaming from ear to ear. It was very nice of Ian to share with his ickle fwend.

Actually that's probably a brilliant idea to get Murray out and away for some peace and quiet.

[dancing cloud]

After much research and thinking about it, we've finally ordered a Westwood F60 4-TRAC with a high grass mulch deck.

 

http://www.westwoodtractors.com/garden-tractors/F60-4trac

 

We've had one demonstrated and then found a very local supplier we never knew existed, who was able to beat other quotes when we explained it was a definite order not just a speculative go-see. The dealers have to buy the machines off the supplier, and they're much happier to do that and offer a good discount when they know it's barely going to touch the floor before going to the customer!

 

Much tougher than any of the cheaper tractors, it went up and down the hill very easily, over the bumpy bits and through the boggy bits, and the 4-wheel drive is extremely handy. The high grass deck means it will still look like a field rather than a lawn, but it's really never going to suit the stripey look! We took on board the advice here about buying the best we could afford with the aim of buying once, rather than going cheap and constantly having problems - thank you everyone for all your advice.

 

Probably a couple of weeks for delivery and Dad will have a new toy for xmas