Cutting narrow strips of grass.

[88V8]

How to cut narrow strips, might be a better title.

OH has an enthusiasm for vegetable growing which I share to the extent of eating them.
The main growing area around 70 x 30ft is protected by an antibadger stockade of chicken wire, and divided into seven beds separated by grass paths about a foot wide. I suppose there must be nigh on 350 linear ft of paths to cut.

The paths are practical to work from and look nice, but are a pain to maintain. The strimmer is too indiscriminate and also blasts cuttings into crops such as lettuce. It's remarkably hard to wash all the grass out of a lettuce.
And then there's the edges.
All this grass cutting eats into time that could be spent more productively and pleasantly.

Worse, OH who likes the paths, but also likes things fairly neat, resorts to a hand shear which is not good for her arfritis.

I've tried one of those battery cutters like a mini Allen Scythe, but it's awfully slow and constantly clogs up with cuttings.

Battery mowers all seem to have wheels, which would drop onto the beds and scalp the grass.

I had thought to try an olde push mower, one with rollers at each end. And then use the battery cutter for the edges and up agin the chicken wire.
Does anyone have a better solution?

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[JohnB]

minimalist hand mower, one with 2 wheels, 30cm blade and a small collection box. Set the cut height high so the wheels can run on the earth.

Or for x10 the price, a robotic mower than nibbles.

[staffordian]

I was going to suggest a simple cylinder mower with front and rear roller until I realised you had already considered it as a partial solution

Another option might be a rotary mower with rear roller.

You can run with one front wheel over the edge if you hold it carefully, and some cut very close to a raised edge, such as your badger proof fencing.

[Alaric]

Battery mowers all seem to have wheels, which would drop onto the beds and scalp the grass.

I was quite impressed recently, seeing someone taking over an overgrown allotment who used a battery powered hedge trimmer to attack the grass.

[Itsallaguess]

Battery mowers all seem to have wheels, which would drop onto the beds and scalp the grass.

I was quite impressed recently, seeing someone taking over an overgrown allotment who used a battery powered hedge trimmer to attack the grass.

That doesn't sound as far-fetched as you might think...

These cordless, lightweight grass shears, with both a grass-trimmer and hedge-trimmer adaptor, might be just what the OP is looking for -



Some examples here from Amazon that might be a good start if the OP is interested -

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Garden-Gear-Lightweight-Lithium-Ion-Attachment/dp/B072VZK7X4

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fixkit-Cordless-Interchangeable-Telescopic-Attachments/dp/B07M7GNYKM

It's always worth having a read of the Amazon user-reviews with these types of investigations, as they can often throw up reviews from people that are in a similar situation to your own, hopefully with some helpful news with regards to the success or otherwise of the product solving such issues, but on the face of it, and going off the picture above from one of the linked examples, something like these small wheeled devices might well solve the issue at hand....

Cheers,

Itsallaguess

[scotia]

replace with plastic grass?

[ReformedCharacter]

I have a similar vegetable plot but make no attempt to cultivate grass between the beds. Nonetheless, grass and weeds grow between the beds and I (in theory!) hoe the surfaces back to a fairly weed and grass free surface regularly. Not a very good solution. Can I suggest paving of some sort might look attractive and cut down on maintenance?

RC

[88V8]

Can I suggest paving of some sort might look attractive and cut down on maintenance?

Haha yes you can certainly suggest it to me. But it's OH's domain.

Itsallaguess, that little pushalong looks like the Ryobi version I have - sans wheels - but it's painfully slow and clogs up all the time.
Perhaps other makes are better.
Ryobi's cordless hedge trimmer is pretty useless; I tend to default there because I have so many of their power tools and batteries, but that shouldn't really be a deciding factor, bit of a tail wagging the dog situation.
I wonder if Stihl do something, I bought one of their long-reach hedge cutters recently and it cuts superbly.
OK, perhaps you've started a fruitful train of thought.

V8

[redsturgeon]

A flymo?

[stevensfo]

Can I suggest paving of some sort might look attractive and cut down on maintenance?

Haha yes you can certainly suggest it to me. But it's OH's domain.

Itsallaguess, that little pushalong looks like the Ryobi version I have - sans wheels - but it's painfully slow and clogs up all the time.
Perhaps other makes are better.
Ryobi's cordless hedge trimmer is pretty useless; I tend to default there because I have so many of their power tools and batteries, but that shouldn't really be a deciding factor, bit of a tail wagging the dog situation.
I wonder if Stihl do something, I bought one of their long-reach hedge cutters recently and it cuts superbly.
OK, perhaps you've started a fruitful train of thought.

V8

Thanks for warning me about Ryobi. I have some Ryobi tools but simple drills, a driver and a polisher ...what a waste that was!

My best cordless tools are without doubt Makita, though the 2x 18v models. I've got through so many strimmers but I love my Makita strimmer. Bloody powerful, easy to replace the cord, cuts everything. Before, I spent the same amount of time fiddling with the cables as I did the cutting. The blower is amazing and I now get shouted at by my wife if the next batteries haven't been recharged. The hedge trimmer works well, though it is for simple jobs, not 5 metre high hedges! Yes, the initial outlay is higher than for a corded machine, but it's worth it in time, stress, energy saved.

Steve

[88V8]

I won't weary you with the roundabout process by which I found this.
But the Stihl HSA25 cordless grass shear is truly the cat's pyjamas.

Wider blades than the Ryobi. Cuts without jamming. The little battery seems to go on and on.
Slices along with a surgical hiss, Blofeld to Ryobi's Mr Bean.

In retrospect, the Ryobi was the tail wagging the dog. After all, I had a Ryobi cordless hedge trimmer which was quite hopeless, why would their grass shear be any better? But I also had the infrastructure - the charger and a host of batteries. So I bought it anyway. A silly ass thing to do.

Here's the Stihl
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Stihl-HSA-25 ... Sw5RRaeXUp

And the mini shrub trimmer that goes among with it is pretty good too. Not a substitute for a hedge trimmer, but fine for small topiary.

I need another cordless hedge trimmer. It won't be a Ryobi.

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