Scythes and the City

Zürich, Switzerland

The city government of Zürich, Switzerland, has published a document titled 12 Golden Rules for the care, preservation, and enhancement of valuable natural areas in landscapes and residential areas (loosely translated here).  

Golden Rule Number One involves the use of scythes:

1.  Mow grasslands with scythes and sickle bar mowers (and not with string trimmers or "shredder" mowers).

This rule is intended to minimize the harm to insects and other small animals. The other rules are summarized below:

2.  Stagger the maintenance, leaving at least 10-20% uncut until the next time, and leave borders along hedges and shrubs.

3.  Increase diversity of species by renouncing the use of fertilizers, peat, and chemical pesticides.

4.  Create shelters (rockpiles, branches, etc.) for small animals.

5.  Create nesting boxes for birds and wild bees.

6.  Make sure that ponds and wetlands are amphibian-friendly.

7.  Use native plants.

8.  Restore meadows.

9.  Cut back shrubs and bushes only during the dormant season (autumn/winter).

10.  Grow old trees, and plant new ones.

11.  Green roofs, balconies, and walls.

12.  Forgo irrigation, and use site-adapted plants.

City employees mow a park in Zurich

Pioneer species on disturbed land in Zurich

For more information about city employees using scythes, see the earlier post titled "Municipal Scythes".








Sources:

Satellite photo of central Zürich, NASA, 2002, public domain

City of Zürich, Civil Engineering and Waste Department, Urban Nature, Care Procedures:

Stadt Zürich, Tiefbau- und Entsorgungsdepartement, Grün Stadt Zürich, Natur- und Erlebnisräume, Stadtnatur, Pflegeverfahren

12 Goldene Regeln... (12 Golden Rules... .pdf document)

Zürich park mowing photograph linked from Stadt Zürich site

Zürich pioneer species photograph linked from Stadt Zürich site

Q&A: Mowing in Florida

Q:  I've been mowing my lawn this year with a scythe, and so far I'm very pleased.  I've run into one problem so far.  My lawn, like many in this area, is bahia grass. This grass likes to be mown high -- four or five inches or even higher.  It resents a close cut.  Sometimes while I'm mowing, the blade will ride along the top of the grass, clipping just the tips of the blades and especially the tall V-shaped seed heads this grass sends up, and the lawn looks good afterward.  But sometimes the blade wants to "dig in" and cut the grass close to the ground, and it takes the lawn a while to recover.  I've found that it helps to keep a loose grip and not press the blade downward. I keep experimenting with hafting angles. I was wondering if you have any additional tips for achieving a high but even cut.

A:  Here are some suggestions.  (Peter Vido may add some comments if I missed something): 


(1)  Adjust your snath (if possible) so that the blade will "hover" four inches above the ground when you are holding the snath with your right arm fully extended (assuming that you are right handed).  Otherwise, trying to consistently cut four or five inches above the ground will probably tire your arm muscles and give erratic results.  


(2)  Check the horizontal balance of the blade during the swing.  If the tip of the blade naturally tends to dip downward during the stroke (which would cut some grass too short), then make adjustments to the snath (if possible) according to the instructions here concerning horizontal balance.  If snath adjustments are not possible, then move the arms and wrists slightly during the swing to keep the blade level.


(3)  It may be useful to adjust the "lay" of the blade to increase the upward tilt of the sharp edge, especially if snath adjustments are not possible and you are relying on your arm and wrist muscles to modify your swing.  This is done by inserting a wedge between the snath and the tang of the blade, as shown in the instructions here concerning the lay.


(4)  Continue experimenting with the hafting angle to see what works best for you.


(5)  Keep the blade sharp, as a dull blade either bends the grass over or requires more swinging force, which can make the cuts more difficult to control.


(6)  For best results, try to mow in the mornings (or on cloudy days, even in the rain if it's not during a thunderstorm) before the sun dries out the grass.


Good luck, and feel free to give us an update.






(Sources:  Photo "Zoey lurks in the bahia grass" by j.s. clark, 
 http://www.flickr.com/photos/57366077@N00/21798599,
 Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic 
 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/deed.en)

The Scythe-Whetting Song

"The Scythe-whetting or Rollicking Song is probably a form of greeting as well as love as it is uttered when two or more meet. 

"It has been likened to the sound produced by the sharpening of a scythe and is a sharp metallic wich-er  wick-er  wick-ah  ... repeated from two to twelve times."

[This is referring to the Northern Flicker (Colaptus auratus), a member of the woodpecker family.]







(Source:  "The Wilson Bulletin", a magazine devoted to the study of birds, Number 31, "A Monograph of the Flicker", by Frank L. Burns, page 27, Wilson Ornithological Society, Oberlin Ohio, April 1900.  
http://books.google.com/books?id=aQwXAAAAYAAJ&dq=%22scythe-whetting%22&pg=RA1-PA27#v=onepage&q=%22scythe-whetting%22&f=false))

Crimson Clover

Here in Oregon, crimson clover is now in bloom (a little earlier than usual).  This photo was taken in June of a previous year.  

The first painting in yesterday's post (Deyrolle's "Le repos des faneurs") features a field of crimson clover (or so I believe).  You can decide for yourself:  Here is some detail from the painting to compare with the following photos from my backyard.

Bee heaven.

(Source:  Detail of painting by Theophile Louis Deyrolle, "repos des faneurs",  http://www.culture.gouv.fr/Wave/image/joconde/0041/m009804_0000166_p.jpg,
 Hay in Art Database ID: 686.  

 All photos by Steve Leppold)