Sears Lawn Mower Belt
Good Sites to find Aftermarket Lawn Mower Belts at Discounted Prices
  Click Here for Discount Lawn Mower Parts
  Replacement Sears Mower Belts
    Tips on Making a Great Looking Lawn, Lawn Mowers,   Mulching, Landscaping,  and Tips for your Garden, also Finding Great Deals on Aftermarket Belts for Sears Mowers.

13 Master Tips to Winterize your Lawn Mower
By Andrew Caxton

Protect Your investment

After you rake out all the leaves, do not relax. Remember Robert Frost. There are miles to go before you sleep and miles (well not exactly) to go before your lawn mower is allowed to sleep. Unless you do it, your lawn mower might be put to a longer sleep. It may not wake up when winter goes away, and when you need your lawn mower most.

The Why Of Lawn Mower Winterizing

Gasoline in the carburetor of your lawn mower, does not take kindly to lowered temperatures of winter. The gasoline gums up and when you try to restart it after the winter, there s no gasoline flow to your engine and it does not start. You will not be able to do the maintenance by yourself. You will lose time and money making the trip to your friendly neighborhood mechanic. You get all this, for not following up simple steps of winterizing your lawn mower. Avoid all this winterize your lawn mower.

The How of Lawn Mower Winterizing

There are some simple steps for winterizing your lawn mower. You can do it your self without involving any one else.

  1. The first thing to do is to remove the gasoline in the tank. This can be done by siphoning the contents in the in a plastic can. Usually a single gallon container should be sufficient.
  2. Keep the can tightly closed after decanting contents of the lawn mower. Place the can in such a way that it cannot topple over and spill the content.
  3. If you use the same grade of gasoline in your car, transfer the content to the car tank, it is much safer that way, or transfer it to winter heating system if that is possible instead of storing gasoline in a can.
  4. Run the engine until the remaining fuel is completely consumed and engine stops on its own.
  5. Drain gearbox oil and crank case oil. Dispose off the oil as per guidelines from municipal authorities for disposal of hazardous waste or hand it over to municipal authorities for doing it. NEVER, EVER, dump it in sewer or on ground.
  6. Remove the spark plug, put lubricating oil (about 50 milliliter) through the opening, and crank up the engine using the rope, so the piston and crankshaft is lubricated.
  7. Ensure that you are wearing hand gloves before you do any of the following activities and take safety precautions to avoid any injury to your hands.
  8. Turn over the engine and clean the undersides of the lawn mower to remove traces of grass, muck attached to the blades and clean the working parts of lawn mower. Remove any foreign material lodged between blade and body.
  9. With a small piece of steel wool, clean all the underside areas and remove any rest from the covers and body of the lawn mower.
  10. Apply protective solution like WD-40 to the cleaned up surfaces
  11. If required, remove, sharpen and refit the blade, and turn the lawn mower to its normal position.
  12. Change the air filter and the oil filter. If it is possible to clean the air filter, you can do so, but if it is made of paper, it must be replaced. The air filters and oil filters can also be replaced just before re-using the lawn mower, but it pays to do this while winterizing as you might forget doing so before starting.
  13. Fill up the tires with air and wheel it to its resting place for winter
When spring arrives and the grass is ready to be cut, fill up the fuel tank with gasoline and start up. Your old faithful lawn mower will purr into motion and you will be ready for your lawn maintenance. It will purr like a contented cat.

Andrew Caxton contributes adding reviews and special articles regularly to http://www.lawn-mowers-and-garden-tractors.com . A gardening website that carries interesting readings on lawn equipment and spare parts, including how to look after lawn mowers for a long lasting smooth work

 


How to Grow Asparagus Peas
By Terry Blackburn

The asparagus pea is an unusual crop of rectangular pods, which are eaten whole when they are about 1 ½ in. (38mm) long. This is a prolific cropper with very attractive dark red flowers.

Soil Preparation

Four weeks before sowing, add well-rotted compost and manure into the soil to a depth of 9 in. (228mm) at the rate of a bucketful to the yard. Two weeks before sowing rake in a top dressing of fish manure or bone meal at a rate of 4 oz. (120g) to the sq. yd; alternatively, rake in a mixture of 2 oz.(60g) carbonate of lime and 1 oz. (30g) sulphate of potash to the sq. yd.

Sowing

Choose a well-drained area, where the ground has been well prepared to provide aeration. Asparagus peas must not be grown in the same plot as in the previous year. Avoid sowing seeds in soils that are wet and cold as they can sometimes be attacked by fungus, then germination is poor. To sow the seeds in 2 in. (50mm) deep drills in April they can be thinned out later allowing 18 in. (45cm) between plants; the distance between the drills should be 3 ft. (90cm). Give the plants protection from birds by placing small twigs over the soil, or use black cotton stranded from pegs close to the ground.

General Care

When the seedlings are about 3 in. (76mm) high, they should be given support so that they to not sprawl over, this can be done by erecting posts at the end of each row on both sides of the plants, between these fasten string so that there is support from both sides of the row. As soon as the flowers appear the crop should be given an adequate amount of water in order for the pods to grow plump and juicy and to prevent them becoming stunted. Mulching is a good idea because it helps to retain moisture.

Harvesting

Pick the pods frequently when they are ready to encourage even more pods. Harvest the peas as near to the time you intend to cook them as possible to retain the flavour. When the plants have finished fruiting, cut off the stems and put them onto the compost heap, allow the roots to remain in the ground so that they can fix nitrogen into the soil.

Terry Blackburn. Internet Marketing Consultant, living in South Shields in the North-East of England. Author and Producer of blog http://www.lawnsurgeon.blogspot.com Author of "Your Perfect Lawn," a 90 Page eBook devoted to Lawn Preparation, Lawn Care and Maintenance. Find it at http://www.lawnsurgeon.com