The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Smallholding => Techniques and skills => Topic started by: mojo on June 10, 2008, 02:51:47 pm
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can someone who has been there done that give me some solid advice please..............the garden is nearly all knee high fine grasses and ragged robin type plants and a few thistles and brambles...........now i have to clear them ..should i buy a strimmer or a brushcutter??........will they do each others job or will one be better than the other..........your opions please.....thanks mojo
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If you have a large area i would recommend getting a petrol strimmer that comes with a brushcutter blade. when you use the strimmer in long grass cut 4or 5 inches off the top in the first swing a couple of inches in the back swing then your desired height on the last swing before taking a step forward. I also find it easier to start on an outside left edge and walking to the end and circling round in 'sets' as you would with a tractor cutting hay. Only use the blade for thicker stuff as it clogs in grass (unless you can scythe). Also important is the thickness of the 'string' in the strimmer... thicker grass - thicker string.
Its easier to do then describe, sorry if it isn't clear
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Strimmer or Brushcutter it matters not. Buy something that comes with a harness and the big handles and is at least 5hp.This then gives you the option of using wire (for the garden) or a blade (for the waist high stuff). I tried the various combinations of wire,lollipop wire and the blade,and by far the easiest,and cheapest,was the blade. With wire,it took two men 3 hours to cut down 400 sq metres of grass. With a blade,it took me 8 hours to do an acre and that was taking it easy.All machines were Stihl and the same hp.
There are a few hire shops around so you could "try before you buy" and see which is the most comfortable to use and which one does the job best. Some retail outlets will even bring over a selection for you to try.......... Ree
PS Oh,and I made the mistake of thinking that the cut grass I left behind would be a good mulch to stop the weeds re-appearing. In reality,it inhibited the new growth of grass and allowed the weeds (nettles and thistles) to spring ahead. I wish I had run over the whole lot with a mower now and collected the cuttings. I now have a friends sheep (along with my 6 geese) on the paddock for a few weeks at a time to keep it all down and the land is improving quite considerably in quite a short space of time.