Mulching Mowers - your views please

I am considering buying a mulching mower - and hoping to get some advice on whether they are actually any good or not.

Currently I have about 1/4 of an acre of grass and the clippings are taking over the world, I am also breaking lawnmowers left right and centre.

Thanks

 

I use several mulching mowers and find them alright but with limitations, pricipally they struggle to cope with longer grass, alright if you mow regularly.

A good option is a 3 in 1 mower which can mulch, collect or discharge the grass

As to the breaking of mowers you have to ask why? Are they being overloaded? not looked after? or do you have obstacles such as roots or path edges which catch the mower?

 

In a lot of cases all a mulching does is close off the chute to the grass box.

So the grass just gets deposited on the lawn (all be it cut a bit more - if your lucky)

 

I can see for and against mulching mowers, valuable nitrogen back into the root system,

But also, this can cause much more build up of thatch and dead material which will make a thick matting in the surface and sub-surface.

This may then lead to fungal infections, poor root system, poor growth, and dry patch.

Cheers Hostaholic

 

Well, I've just bought a Flymo Multimow 360XC specifically because it's marketed as a mulching mower.

If you're looking for a mulching mower, don't buy this. It's terrible! The mulching plug doesn't fit the grass chute properly so all that happens is that the grass cuttings come out of the back!

It's going back tomorrow.

 

We have an acre to mow and have a Countax ride-on with a mulching deck fitted. It does chop up the grass but it still deposits it in rows on the lawn. We get so much wind where we live that when it dries it just blows away into the neighbouring fields! Appearance is improved if you mow more often as the lying grass is chopped up more. For appearance I would choose to collect the cuttings, but like you we would drown in them if we did.:hehe:

 

I used to cut an orchard for our neighbour with her ride on mower (not a so-called mulching mower) I used to put the mowings on our garden as a mulch. It rots down over time and can be worked in. I use a normal rotary mower on our garden and if the grass is too long I raise the front of it by pressing on the handles for the first push then take a second push on all four wheels.

Why pay extra for a so-called mulching mower, it's just a gimmick to charge more.