Hard Work in the Yard

Even though I am the primary mower of the yard, the yard tends to fall more under Steve's department.  At the beginning of spring, he did all the research on what applications our yard will need.  He even went ahead and purchased all the correct formulas for the entire summer (thanks Menard's rebates!).

The biggest issue we had with the yard this year were dandelions!  They were everywhere!  After 2 applications of weed & feed, the dandelions have finally disappeared.  And another issue we had to hurdle - the motor on our mower went out!  Last year, Steve winterized it (burned out the gas, drained the oil, etc).  This year, he sharpened the blade, put in new oil, put in the gas, and . . . it wouldn't work.  The motor was all locked up.  After calling my dad for advice and research, it was decided a new mower was needed.

We decided that we'd put a little more investment into this mower (the old one was purchased on a whim in TN and we went with the cheapest model).  This new mower is rear-wheel drive and is self-propelled. I think it has shaved some of the time off mowing the yard (maybe because it's bigger and moves quicker).  Now that I'm in my 2nd trimester, I still mow the front yard which is relatively flat.  While Steve mows the side and back yards which are hilly and have ruts in them.  We'll keep up this deal until I feel like I can't mow the front anymore.  But honestly, with the self-propelled, all I feel like I'm doing is walking around with the mower.

Here are some pre-treatment and post-treatment shots of the yard!

Before the Weed & Feed:

(Backyard is mainly weeds -- always has been.)

(This picture is after the first round of weed & feed, but before the second round which finally got rid of all the dandelions.)

(More of those wonderful dandelions next to the garage.)

After the Weed & Feed:

(Back yard weeds have finally been tamed and it looks more like a yard.)

(We need to mulch under the trees, but no more dandelions! This is the same section as the 2nd picture in the "before" section.)

(Front yard -- no more dandelions or jungle look!)

(Don't be deceived by the old mower in the background and the new mower in the foreground -- our new red mower is a beast compared to the puny old one.  I'm just thankful for the self-propelled feature and having a mower again!)