Kitchen Garden Forum

Last summer we bought an Austrian scythe. I only got to start using it a couple of weeks ago. It's brilliant. A bit of time and thought needed to set up the blade and sharpen, but well worth it.

It is at worst twice as fast* as my strimmer (41cc pro model) and very versatile. Today I have been cutting in a woodland garden around young shrubs and more open areas. Easily going through young brambles and elder as well as nettles, dock, grass and other rampant herbaceous growth. I could reach under very low shrubs with it, and not damage the trunks in a way that would be impossible with the strimmer.

Last week I cut a lot of tall grass, and a lot of weeds on a disused veg plot in super fast time. No unwrapping long grass which gets tangled around the strimmer head, or having to lengthen the string regularly - just a quick sharpen every 5 minutes.

Highly recommended.

Mole



*A couple of years back I saw a scythe wielder race a big guy with a stihl strimmer to cut 5x5m of standing grass - the scythe won by a long shot, with a better 'finish' and 'product'.

i bought a pair of long handled lawn shears at the boot sale a month or so ago , ive found them better than the strimmer for trimming round fruit bushes.

My husband has been scything the meadow areas on our village nature reserve for many years after the wildflowers have shed their seeds. He finds it very soothing, he says, but it's hard work on large areas. My job is to toss the hay!

But which method wins on steep (1 in 2 or 3) slopes?

sheep

Geoff wrote:But which method wins on steep (1 in 2 or 3) slopes?

Goats

sheep definatly taste better than goats

If it was me doing it, a strimmer would be quicker.
But, from what I have read, the people of the hilly/mountainous areas of Eastern Europe and the Balkans. seem to manage well with scythes. I expect it takes practice...

Mole

Rained off...

Hi Mole,
I regret to say that I can remember corn being cut by gangs of men and the women gathering and the children stacking the stooks. A gang of 12 men with Scythes can cut corn at an amazing rate when they all get into a rhythm. There is no way a strimmer would do that job without buggering it all up.
Sadly Tempus has Fugited and I now have to use a strimmer and doubt that I could manage a scythe.
JB.

Morning Johnboy

Sorry about the poor quality, but this is a picture of local men with scythes and one with a sickle at harvest time. The caption reads: Haf 1928 - Summer 1928



As you say, Tempus fugits, and I mostly use a strimmer - though I did have the scythe out a few days ago to cut some long grass for the hens.

Alan

We would love to use sheep or goats to keep the grass down on the Nature Reserve but you can't just borrow a couple of them nowadays. You have to submit papers for moving animals from one place to another. So the scythe will have to do, steep slopes and all.

DARE I MENTION ALLEN SCYTHES? OR BETTER STILL MAYFIELD MOTOR SCYTHES!!!