Do kids and lawn mowers always mix?

With all this wind and rain we have been having, lots of small branches get scattered throughout the lawn. The other day I was passing a yard where a school-aged child was on a riding mower speeding along with no regard to what lay in his path. As a result, the mower – I suppose without a functioning deck discharge guard – hurled something toward the roadway. This prompted this article about mower safety and what we should be teaching our children when we let them operate the family mower.

•Teach them to pick up all stones, sticks, pine cones and other debris before mowing to avoid damaging the mower or injuring someone with flying objects. Teach children not to try to pick up debris – while on the mower with engine running – by reaching over to grab it, which I have seen some doing. This is very dangerous. Pick-up first, before starting to mow!

•Teach them to mow so discharge is always away from the road and don’t let pets or other children in the yard when it is being cut. It’s not cute to have a family dog go barking at the discharge shoot! Injury to their face and eyes is likely.

•Teach them to keep all mower safety equipment in place and repair/replace it if it becomes ineffective. I have seen people tie the deck discharge guard back so they can mow grass when it is wet or too high so it won’t chock the blades. Don’t do this – it’s dangerous – even better – don’t mow wet grass because it spreads disease and does not give you a sharp cut. If grass is so high it is chocking out the mower – raise the blade and slow the forward speed down.

•You do the filling when it comes to mowers because children do not understand fully the danger of gas and its fumes. Remember – don’t fill a hot mower with gas even if you have only a little bit more to do. Take a break for 20 minutes or so, and to make filling safer and easier, always pour from small containers. Anything larger than one gallon should be used as a “storage” container, not fill container. A two-gallon container or larger is almost impossible to use as a filling container without spilling some all over the mower. To avoid damage from accidental spills to the lawn itself, when adding fluids (gas or oil), do the filling on a hard surface. This also allows for easier cleanup should a spill occur.

•Teach children never to try to free a bound mower blade or do any work under the mower, unless the spark plug wire has been disconnected. Better yet – they should get an adult to do it.

•If children are to do the mowing, be sure they are well instructed in safety and keep an eye out to make sure they follow the directions you give. Have them wear regular shoes – not flip flops or worse – no shoes.

•When using a riding mower, stress to children to always look behind them when they back up – just as with a car. There are no rear view mirrors on the mower, so it’s up to them to take extra care!

•Finally – mowing slopes or near ditches or slopes is the most dangerous task anyone on a riding mower can attempt. Perhaps an adult should take over this job by mowing the lawn perimeter before turning the mower over to a child. It’s just too easy to slip if using a walk behind, and even easier to turn over using a riding mower on a slope.

Each child is different in their maturity levels – I started mowing at 12 and even though mature, did lots of the stupid things I listed above even though I knew better. It’s a wonder I still have all my toes and fingers. Hoping you and yours have a safe and productive mowing season.