grass, then a pass from the near edge of the main body of grass, working in a counter clockwise direction. By doing this, you are continually picking off an area of grass without putting undue stresses onto both the steering, clutch and brakes of the tractor unit and onto the mower linkages. Once the thinner strip of grass is all cut, simply pick off another 10 to 15 metre strip and continue the process until all the grass has been cut.

Although I have described this in an amenity setting (where the width of cut possible from the mowi

This may not be the burning question on everyone's lips, but have you ever wondered how the grass in large open meadows and parks gets cut?

You may be surprised to hear that there is a "magic formula" for ensuring these areas are cut with maximum speed and efficiency, and I am about to let you in on the secret.

Let's first talk about why it is important to complete the operation with care, speed and efficiency. The equipment used for mowing is expensive - running into tens of thousands to purchase. The more productive hours you can get out the machinery, the more value you have got out of your purchase. Using the correct formula when mowing serves a number of purposes:

1: The task is finished quickly, so you are getting more productive output from the machine.

2: There is less wear and tear on the machinery if it is used correctly. This keeps repair and servicing costs to a minimum, extends the useful life expectancy of the equipment and keeps downtime (the time when a piece of equipment is not available for productive use while being serviced or repaired) to a minimum.

3: Less fuel is used, which provides both a cost saving and benefit to the environment.

So, on to the system used. First of all, we need to ensure there is sufficient area cut around the perimeter to allow a wide turning circle when cutting the main body of grass. This is done by making two or three passes around the entire perimeter so that a strip between eight and ten metres has been cut around the entire area.

Once the border strip has been cut,it is then necessary to divide the area into manageable segments. The operator should orient themselves in an imaginary rectangular grid and make the first row of mowing about ten to fifteen metres in from the edge and either the entire length of the field or up to 500 metres if the site is very large. In this case, it is advisable to take passes across the breadth of the field at 500 metre intervals as a guide. This way, you have a strip of grass to your left, and the remainder of the grass to your right. You then continue mowing by taking one pass from the farthest edge of the thinner strip of grass, then a pass from the near edge of the main body of grass, working in a counter clockwise direction. By doing this, you are continually picking off an area of grass without putting undue stresses onto both the steering, clutch and brakes of the tractor unit and onto the mower linkages. Once the thinner strip of grass is all cut, simply pick off another 10 to 15 metre strip and continue the process until all the grass has been cut.

Although I have described this in an amenity setting (where the width of cut possible from the mowin

can get out the machinery, the more value you have got out of your purchase. Using the correct formula when mowing serves a number of purposes:

1: The task is finished quickly, so you are getting more productive output from the machine.

2: There is less wear and tear on the machinery if it is used correctly. This keeps repair and servicing costs to a minimum, extends the useful life expectancy of the equipment and keeps downtime (the time when a piece of equipment is not available for productive use while being serviced or repaired) to a minimum.

3: Less fuel is used, which provides both a cost saving and benefit to the environment.

So, on to the system used. First of all, we need to ensure there is sufficient area cut around the perimeter to allow a wide turning circle when cutting the main body of grass. This is done by making two or three passes around the entire perimeter so that a strip between eight and ten metres has been cut around the entire area.

Once the border strip has been cut,it is then necessary to divide the area into manageable segments. The operator should orient themselves in an imaginary rectangular grid and make the first row of mowing about ten to fifteen metres in from the edge and either the entire length of the field or up to 500 metres if the site is very large. In this case, it is advisable to take passes across the breadth of the field at 500 metre intervals as a guide. This way, you have a strip of grass to your left, and the remainder of the grass to your right. You then continue mowing by taking one pass from the farthest edge of the thinner strip of grass, then a pass from the near edge of the main body of grass, working in a counter clockwise direction. By doing this, you are continually picking off an area of grass without putting undue stresses onto both the steering, clutch and brakes of the tractor unit and onto the mower linkages. Once the thinner strip of grass is all cut, simply pick off another 10 to 15 metre strip and continue the process until all the grass has been cut.

Although I have described this in an amenity setting (where the width of cut possible from the mowi

red) to a minimum.

3: Less fuel is used, which provides both a cost saving and benefit to the environment.

So, on to the system used. First of all, we need to ensure there is sufficient area cut around the perimeter to allow a wide turning circle when cutting the main body of grass. This is done by making two or three passes around the entire perimeter so that a strip between eight and ten metres has been cut around the entire area.

Once the border strip has been cut,it is then necessary to divide the area into manageable segments. The operator should orient themselves in an imaginary rectangular grid and make the first row of mowing about ten to fifteen metres in from the edge and either the entire length of the field or up to 500 metres if the site is very large. In this case, it is advisable to take passes across the breadth of the field at 500 metre intervals as a guide. This way, you have a strip of grass to your left, and the remainder of the grass to your right. You then continue mowing by taking one pass from the farthest edge of the thinner strip of grass, then a pass from the near edge of the main body of grass, working in a counter clockwise direction. By doing this, you are continually picking off an area of grass without putting undue stresses onto both the steering, clutch and brakes of the tractor unit and onto the mower linkages. Once the thinner strip of grass is all cut, simply pick off another 10 to 15 metre strip and continue the process until all the grass has been cut.

Although I have described this in an amenity setting (where the width of cut possible from the mowi

egments. The operator should orient themselves in an imaginary rectangular grid and make the first row of mowing about ten to fifteen metres in from the edge and either the entire length of the field or up to 500 metres if the site is very large. In this case, it is advisable to take passes across the breadth of the field at 500 metre intervals as a guide. This way, you have a strip of grass to your left, and the remainder of the grass to your right. You then continue mowing by taking one pass from the farthest edge of the thinner strip of grass, then a pass from the near edge of the main body of grass, working in a counter clockwise direction. By doing this, you are continually picking off an area of grass without putting undue stresses onto both the steering, clutch and brakes of the tractor unit and onto the mower linkages. Once the thinner strip of grass is all cut, simply pick off another 10 to 15 metre strip and continue the process until all the grass has been cut.

Although I have described this in an amenity setting (where the width of cut possible from the mowi

grass, then a pass from the near edge of the main body of grass, working in a counter clockwise direction. By doing this, you are continually picking off an area of grass without putting undue stresses onto both the steering, clutch and brakes of the tractor unit and onto the mower linkages. Once the thinner strip of grass is all cut, simply pick off another 10 to 15 metre strip and continue the process until all the grass has been cut.

Although I have described this in an amenity setting (where the width of cut possible from the mowing unit can be several metres at a time), these methods can also be adopted for large gardens by simply scaling down the segments proportionate to the mowing equipment used. Once you have tried this method, you will never want to go back to the old "ever decreasing circles" formula.