Scythe - VERY valuable harvesting tool
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- Опубліковано 25 сер 2024
- www.edibleacres...
onescytherevol... - The scythe maker of what is used in the video here. Not cheap at all, but I would venture it's one of the very best options you can possibly get.
scythesupply.com/ - Great option for reasonably priced scythes. I have a few from them and have been happy. They are helpful on the phone too!
Check out local yard sales, craigslist, antique shops, etc. Most scythes out there are heavy American scythes with very very dull blades. It's a big uphill climb to get them functional and enjoyable but possibly worth it to save a lot of money.
Comment below on other makers and options that you have found to be of value!
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Happy growing!
Scything a lawn is so much nicer than using a push mower. No noise, no gas, no fuel needed. Just you and your trusty scythe getting exercise while the birds sing.
I use an antique scythe and it will still outlive me, it's a pleasure to use and you still hear the birds. No protective visor to stop you seeing these lovely volunteer plants, no earplugs to stop you hearing the kids etc, no expensive fuel, simple upkeep and a very meditative action. Strimers and bush whackers suck.
I 100% appreciate your approach to your plot of wildlife (land), mimicking natural processes, using whats close for several purposes and always looking for the least work / max output profit as we only get so many hours in the day.
I've been scything for about 4 years now for my small 9 acre farm. It is a labour of love, and an excellent workout. I do use it for many of the application you are using it for like mulching, and I feed my sheep with it by harvesting in parts of the farm when their paddocks have been depleted. A couple of notes to add from my experience. As you pointed out, a sharp blade is essential ... it can go quickly from an enjoyable relaxing workout with a sharp blade to a back breaking frustrating task with a dull blade. Learning the fine art of peening helps. Unfortunately if you have voles, over mulching can provide them with the perfect home, and I have lost winter squash, sweet potatoes and more to them ... they don't like to be out in the open, so I remove the mulch after the fruit starts to develop, and cultivate as needed. Oh, and bush blades have excellent applications like working in hedgrows, taking down thicker woody materials.
SO GLAD TO LEARN THERE A BUSH BLADES
Great to see a scything video from you!
This is not an Austrian scythe (which would be a Schroeckenfux) but an Italian Falci. I have both brands, also an Iranian one, and a vintage English style scythe.
Hate to burst your bubble, but that 1 minute's worth of scything did not equal a small square bale of hay. Dry that out and compress it, and you would find it only makes about one leaf out of a bale.
A strong experienced scyther could mow an acre per day. Probably a ten hour day.
An acre gives about one ton of hay.
One ton of hay = 40 small square bales.
So he would only be cutting about 4 small square bales per hour.
15 minutes mowing would produce one bale of hay, for a very good mower.
These calculations are what go through my head as I am mowing grass with my scythe, raking and turning it, gathering the dried hay and carting it into the barn.
A huge load dragged in on a plastic sheet, about 6 feet wide x 10 feet long, piled about 4 feet high, turns out to be equivalent to surprisingly few square bales of compressed hay. Very enjoyable to make though, deeply satisfying, wonderful exercise, a treasure trove of winter fodder.
That looks like incredibly satisfying work
It really is!
I live up in central ME and am in the process of finding funding to purchase land up here to homestead on, and I’m largely using your acreage as a model. You are doing great work and are really helping me to fill in my gaps of knowledge where New England natives and climate are concerned. I’m from Ohio originally, so the differences in ecosystems is a learning curve for me.
I lived on the eastern seaboard from New Hampshire to PA/NJ most of my life. Our homestead is in SW Michigan. I feel your learning curve ;)
I moved from SE Ohio to NW Ohio and there was a learning curve in that 245 mile distance. Best of luck to you
I transplanted from central CA to middle GA, (10” of rain to 50+” difference), 5 years in I’m still learning! Every season is an education. Keep with it, the land will show you what it needs if you carefully observe how it reacts to changes you make.
Always sharpen with wet stone. Stone is placed in holder with water, carried with belt.
My father, grandfather, and great-grandfather always did it like that, too. It's important for the best and longest maintenance.
It is easier working with sharper blade. Old school😀.
And do it when is dew. So early morning.
Or can I wet the field in the Evening and then Mow? Basically i will wet the field, broadcast Horsegram, then scythe and then mulch
Oh boy. I haven’t kept up with your channel in a while, but wow did I miss it. Just a video about scything had me relaxed, inspired, and present. What a beautiful thing. Cheers!!
I used to watch the Amish harvest their tobacco in the same way. All you need is a couple of mules and a wagon and you'll be able to rent yourself out to the neighboring farmers. Great work!
Thank you for posting this, it's so useful to see examples of how permaculture systems are managed. I just got property of my own that looks very similar (zone 6a), rebuilt a scythe from three broken ones, and no one understands my enthusiasm for building a system similar to this. It's straightforward and builds resilience - it just appears chaotic on the surface. I'm hoping to include rotations of some sort of livestock, but have a lot to learn/experience
Exciting adventure it seems!
My antique scythe needs a handle (needs to be based on my height?). Late husband taught me how to "dance" with it.. Smooth & calming.
You might reach out to Benjamin Bouchard (Baryonyx Knife Company) for a snath, or at least good information on fitting one. Ben is an expert on the American pattern scythe, but also knows his stuff all around scything.
It might be a scary thought for you but I suspect I'm not alone in coveting ANY insight you choose to give us in terms of your context and thought processes as you manage your gardens on a mostly human level. Watching your content has allowed me to rethink how I garden and to give myself permission to experiment with the "what if" questions. Game changer for sure. Thank you.
👌
I have a scythe supply outfit that I got 3 or 4 years ago. Mostly inspired by Jim Kovolyski on UA-cam. Best take away I got recently is to pretend you are holding a hat under your back arm. Your technique was good! Sucks hitting that rock, but I'd appreciate you showing how you fix the ding. I have a fux 18 ditch blade and a fux grass.
I would also like to see how you fix it.
Having taken inspiration from Jim Kovolyski myself and with only a few years experience my two cents worth is that I frequently cut saplings that are a bit too much for my ditch blade and get plenty of dings and small splits as a result. I've had good luck finding a bit of log / firewood where I can rest the dingned bit of the blade flush against the log and then whacking it with a mallet and then re-sharpening because I've been too cheap to get a proper peening kit. Seems to work just fine for continued sapling / briar clearing
Ditto, would live to watch the repair work!
@@halposhaven I like your idea of having the "wood anvil" as it would be softer and less room for error in over correcting the flaw.
@@halposhaven I want to get a bush blade.
Scythes seem like a much more peaceful alternative to loud mowers. I bet that all the tragic stories I've been hearing recently about folks accidentally mowing over nests of baby bunnies and fawns hidden in grass probably wouldn't have happened if they'd been using scythes. The fact that you're looking at what you're doing, can actually hear and feel what's happening seems like it would increase the likelihood you'd notice the animals before it was too late.
Very very true. I was scything the other day and came about 3 feet away from a baby deer. They instinctually stay absolutely still when they are in deep grasses, so it was on me to see them, stop, and move to another spot. No one got hurt, they didn't run, it worked out. Many times I'll cut a swatch of plants and there will be a bumblebee or honeybee still in a flower, they get tumbled but always are able to just get up and fly away!
I have to move families of praying mantisis here, yet accidents will happen. In deep grass I skimmed the shell of a turtle, and didn't see a baby bunny.
400lbs wow! It will be interesting to see what the return on that amount of potatoes, will be in the end.
Great video! I’m saving for a scythe trying to eliminate gas tools from my yard management!
Amongst the black birds! Delightful.
I may speak for many more here, but Scythe TV could completely be a thing
Thank you for creating and sharing your video. So many “experts” who go into orgasmic bliss on finding blemishes, fault with the video. Instead they ought to be thrilled to prompt the benefits of scything, it’s exposure to the beauty of nature to those who might be unfamiliar but curious to pick up scything vs a lawn mower, brush hog, weed trimmer, etc…. 0:50
I'm sharing what I've learned so far and feel like I very very clearly indicate I'm not a perfect expert or anything like that, but do have some notes to share after 10 years of using the tool.
Thanks for another great video, an inspiration as always! Can’t beat waking up with new edible acres content to have with the morning coffee!
You should do a video on you're most useful and essential tools for garden/homestead. I love you use the fiskars reel mower, I've seen you talk about your hori hori and now the scythe. I can only imagine you have allot of great info on some indispensable traditional tools
Good idea, I'll keep it in mind for sure!
I've picked up several American pattern scythes at a local antique store for an average price per under $30. I'm sure most of them are sold for "decor" and in some cases that's all they're good for, but if the blade isn't cracked or chipped beyond repair, what looks like a rusty wall hanger can be restored to a highly functional tool. The snaths are usually on their last legs and their hardware may be shot, but even then, the blade is still a bargain ;) They're heavier than the European blades, but they also hold their edge much longer once sharpened. With a well fit snath, they're not significantly harder to work with. I would recommend an american pattern for any ditch or brush blades, because they're just sturdier for that heavy work and you'll spend much less time sharpening.
Agreed. the hardened steel used for American blades is much more resilient and versatile in plant type. Just make sure if you have to adjust tang, you're keeping the blade edge cool while you heat up for the bend or you'll remove that hardness from the cutting edge. Also, an American blade has to be ground to a fine edge rather than peened like an Austrian blade.
Great notes here, thanks!
You are an inspiration
I purchased a scythe about 5 years ago, with a hybrid grass/ditch blade. I have a 0.9 acre property, with a large veggie home garden. I was using it at one point to mow my lawn, and totally replace my lawn mower, but I found the grass needs to grow quite long in order for the scything process to be effective. In the meantime we purchased an electric mower, which is great because it is easy for other members of the family to help mow. Also, as we plant more and more permacture plants, we have less and less lawn. However, I still use the scythe on steep hills, in thick grass that is difficult to mow, and to replace the work done by a weed wacker in many edge areas, and to harvest comfrey. Sometimes I wish I had a large open field to let grow, and just enjoy the full scything experience.
Scything short grass is pretty sad. I hate it! Mowing every few weeks in mixed vegetation it is amazing as a harvesting and management tool.
I picked up a vintage American scythe from FB marketplace. $75, a little bit of blade grinding/tang adjustment, and a new nut and the thing is working great. The previous owners kept it inside and in great condition.
That seems like a super great deal.
Thank you kindly, would very much appreciate any other scything tips and techniques you might care to share in future videos💗🤗🥰
Happy to share!
Thoroughly enjoyed watching (and listening) to your work, what a gratifying experience. Shared your video with my son yesterday and then checked out a local antique store...wouldn't you know it, they had 2 on hand, older but sturdy, solid oak, blades are still sharp but rusty, will need to clean them up, handles and hardware are solid. 2 different blades so we have a little homework to do. Couldn't decide on which one so we purchased both, 2 for $50! Appreciate all of the comments in here with experienced 'scyth-ers'! Thank you Sean and Sasha, you're an inspiration!
Really exciting to read this, and thank you for reaching out to share your excitement about all this! I hope they give you years and years of great work and pleasure!
Great video! Really would like to see follow up on sharpening and how you repair that nick. Also your would love to see yourSon technique. Your tarp technique for moving the grass. First saw that in a documentary in Appalachia where they were farming the hilltops. Have been using that for grass and leaf moving ever since.
Really love seeing hour expansion on the potatoes,garlic,corn and sunflowers. Love the serenity of your location Thanks again.
Anything you can teach about this tool and sharpeners for it and how to’s etc I for one would very much appreciate as I hate mowing and I want every part of my yard back and front yard productive. Thank you for this vid and the links.
As a kid my granny let me use such a scythe to harvest grass.
Very cool!
I have 5 scythes. My favorite is the new Faux. some are family heirlooms I used when I was 10 and am 82 now. I really need to do my sharpening video. Safer and more accurate.
That is amazing!
This is my sharpen the scythe safely short. ua-cam.com/video/f4KPGAMoaW4/v-deo.html
You have my respect sir. Folks like you, and the Dutch across the water keep me inspired. You won't see the majority of youngns puttin in the work.
Really like my ditch blade. It handles my lack of skill well.
Cool tshirt, Sean!🤗
Love this. I recently bought a scythe at an antique sale. I need to get a whet stone shaped for it and learn to sharpen and peen it. Probably a good idea to have some extra blades on hand.
Yes! One year now with a scythe and it's excellent! Also it does not mow to low to the ground like a normal mower would do (especially good in a dry climate)
I’m interested in more scythe videos. Blade maintenance, application, and technique.
Can do!
Excellent form!
Hey thanks!
Great video, Sean. I bought a scythe a few months ago from Scythe Supply with a ditch blade to tackle my massive blackberry fields, but I haven't found the time to try it yet. Maybe I'm nervous about getting started and about doing the sharpening and maintenance work. I'd love a video (or two or more) from you with more details. Good to know about One Scythe Revolution, too, and other resources I can check into. The grass is almost waist high now, and I suspect my neighbors are getting nervous about all that potential fuel when fire season starts up again this year in northern CA.
Strong encouragement to just step outside with it and begin experimenting...
I'd like to have you reply on your experience clearing out blackberry vines. Here in Seattle, they are an endemic nuisance. I recently bought a scythe and I'd be interested in your experiences.
I always have a little toolbox with me containing a flat and round file and a peening anvil and hammer when I go scything ;)
That makes sense
Its nice to see someove with good mowing technique.
Good to see you again! Excellent video as always. Nice t-shirt as well. I'm a shiitake lover too 🤗🙃
I think selling it for couple of cents lower than the market rate is a good way to create an income stream. Fertility can be maintain by adding some sea algae compost into the soil and letting it rest for couple months yearly.
Thanks for sharing Sean. Love you man you're the best. I was just about to finally measure myself to order a custom scythe from the same place lol The timing of your video cracks me up. You always seem to post about things that are floating around in my head but I haven't quite got around to yet lol
I am a manual tool enthusiast. I keep a nice sharp sling blade for chop and drop around my herb garden and other perennial areas. I let them get a little choked out and then sling blade all the thick lush grass around the whole area then rake the grass up around each herb plant. The herbs smell much more aromatic when you let them get a little stressed with competition it seems instead of just mulched like my annual beds.
Oddest thing happened to me. I lost my job for reasons outside of my control. Then I prayed for provisions and 2 days later I won a 200,000 dollar sweepstakes lol. I'm still in a state of shock after a couple months. Most I've ever won is a 100 dollar card to Outback Steakhouse. I will use the money wisely though. No crazy mindless splurging like some people. If you know of any valuable tools you use that are sort of a luxury but really helpful with production I'd like to know what kind of manual tools you value the most for your many permaculture land management tasks and gardening. Currently I have a couple sling blades, a broad fork, a Valley Oak Tools wheel hoe, some forged hand sickles, hay forks and spade forks. Someone said bullhooks are useful. Fuel could be a real issue in the future. Thinking hard on what would be some good investments
WOW! Such amazing luck, that is incredible! Meadow Creature makes amazing broad forks, Okatsune are sublime pruners, Hori Hori tools are very worth getting... SO many more fun tools to invest in... Makes sense to invest now while it is still so easy to just pop online and get what you want!
Wishing you abundance and health and good growin'!
Love the scythe action
Thank you so much for everything. At this point i trust you and have learned so much i actually am looking for a scythe currently. Absolutely perfect. Thank you so much chief. Will purchase now. Thank you! 😁🌱💚🙏✨🐝
Got a scythe last year, with a ditch blade. It's an amazing tool for managing brambles, and the edge of a wild context. Also super useful for trimming around things, selectively cutting out new bramble shoots, leaving the volunteer apples unscathed.
But, I really need a grass blade. Mowing hay with the ditch blade is not super effective. It works, but... It's work.
I think a good ditch blade covers 95% of the mowing you may want to do... I was a little sad this grass blade was able to have such a serious ding with what I thought was somewhat careful mowing. I'm just so used to how strong the ditch blade is... Yes, both are great if you have a good 1/2 acre or more of what is now mowed lawn you want to harvest in years to come!
@@edibleacres I had to go check. My current blade is actually a bush blade, and based on the descriptions from Scythe Supply, poor performance mowing grass makes sense. Grass blade in on the way, though. Super excited to try it out.
Meanwhile, the bush blade does work, as evidenced by the piles of mulch ;)
You're the real life Greg The Garlic Farmer
Please give us notes on how you scythe! I'm just learning and could use all the knowledge that you are willing to provide. Thanks!
I am new to scything (very recently) and would greatly appreciate you providing loads more information ... technique, tool selection and 'fit', maintenance tasks and best practices for using the output as mulch.
Thanks
I'll try to make some more videos, there is clearly a lot of interest.
Super tool if you get a good one.
Looks like your scything technique is pretty good and it looks easy to mow. I've just recently started, not up to your level yet. Also got a few tips in this video, so thanks. I noticed your sharpening technique is different to mine (mine maybe wrong), you work mostly one side of the blade then just do one rub on the other side - I'll have to look into that.
Please take any information I offer with a grain of salt, just my way of doing things. Works well for me so hopefully it will for you!
Come out, 'tis now September, the hunters' moon's begun,
And through the wheaten stubble we hear the frequent gun;
The leaves are turning yellow, and fading into red,
While the ripe and bearded barley is hanging down its head.
Chorus (repeated after each verse):
All among the barley, who would not be blithe,
While the ripe and bearded barley is smiling on the scythe.
The wheat is like a rich man, it's sleek and well-to-do;
The oats are like a pack of girls, they're thin and dancing too;
The rye is like a miser, both sulky, lean and small,
Whilst the ripe and bearded barley is the monarch of them all.
The spring is like a young maid that does not know her mind,
The summer is a tyrant of most ungracious kind;
The autumn is an old friend that pleases all he can,
And brings the bearded barley to glad the heart of man.
(One Scythe Revolution) has been experimenting with field scale vegtable production using the scythe on his youtube channel
It's a great channel, he has some lovely content.
Awesome thanks for sharing looking amazing
Nice! We've got an austrian scythe, but as soon as its in my hands i have the coordination of a toddler. Seriously turns out its easier said than done as far as dialing down the technique goes. Seems like something that would be great to workshop/attend a course on, if i could just find one around here!
I'll try to make some time to share more notes on this process...
I don't know if you have need to store the hay for winter but perhaps someone else here does. Years ago I saw a video of people making bails by hand. They has built a box with a plunger on the open end. They stuffed the dried grasses into it and tied it with twine. It was quiet the thing to see.
I do that for the horses, except I use an old tobacco bale box with a lid. I also use an old railroad jack, and a foundation block, and 4 inch concrete block for spacers.
Standing Scythe
Nice T-Shirt
Thanks!
Thank you, unfortunately the scythe set was out of stock but i found an Irish supplier and got sorted.
That is great!
@@edibleacres im getting so much from you, thank you so much! 🌱✨🙏✨
I recently bought an old, steam bent scythe with a grass blade off e-bay for $30. I tried sharpening it with a file and stone, with indifferent results.
So I bought a peening jig and stone from Scythe Supply in Maine, which provided me with good gear. Haven't quite started peening yet. I understand that American blades are made from harder steel and either don't need or can't use peening effectively. But I don't really know the source of the blade, just on what appears to be an American style steam bent snath.
So I'll give it a try and see what happens.
Whether the grass blade will be suitable for my uses also remains to be seen. I may need a blade suitable for rougher work. Again, I'll see.
I was carrying my new Scythe around to try it out on some overgrown urban vegetation, when I was spotted by a carpenter working on a nearby construction project. Turns out he grew up in Russia, near the Ukraine border, and had a lot of experience using a scythe. He didn't think too much of the sharpening job I did with a file, but seeing the scythe was like old home week for him!
Wish I could get a few lessons from him!
At 230 you offered to make a video about the logistics of scything. I would like to see this video
current price of grass hay bales 100# is now 24.00 in AZ.
Yikes!
I have both an Austrian scythe purchased through Scythe Supply, an American pattern bush blade from Benjamin Bouchard at Baryonyx Knife Company and I think it's three now additional antique grass blades also American pattern. Some people will knock the American scythes, largely from ignorance. If you follow the same basic guidelines about making sure that your snath fits you, your blade is set at the correct angle and you keep it sharp, American pattern scythes, curvy snaths and all, are wonderful tools. Care and maintenance is different, you cannot peen an American scythe and you shouldn't grind a European. You can hone both with a good canoe stone like you have, Sean, or with a diamond whip stick if you happen to have one of those around for some other tool.
Mr. Chickadee did a good vid on the American Scythe: ua-cam.com/video/xImLQ24-iXE/v-deo.html
I have these big tufts of grass. I forget what they're called. But I find that I have to be aware of them as they come and cut them w/ their own swing apart from the more lush stuff. I got one from scythe supply last year. I'm worried I might need to reseed hay because I'm on the second year scything what was alfalfa. It's funny how dandelion stands cut like butter but the tufts mixed in make for an unfortunate non-homogeneity in contrast. It's really neat that throughout the winter the area I scythed was greener earlier in spring than the mechanically managed hay next to it.
It's great to do in the morning like this. I usually make my coffee and bring out some hard boiled eggs along w/ it to enjoy in the breaks between scything. 5am or 6am scything is where it's at. I'm over in Scipio across the lake to the east friends w/ Pete and Erin. I have a video on my channel showing my area and scything a little bit. Perhaps I should make a question video for you.
I also nicked a rock at one point but it isn't as noticeable as your gnick. I just finished up this weekend scything and I need to figure out how to reset the blade back b/c it bent back from me being an idiot sparring w/ those tuffs. It went into the ground a couple times and bent back. I'm also having an issue w/ the angle of the blade. It will wiggle itself back closer to 90 degrees no matter how much I tighten the allen wrench grips on the blade. A hot mess.
Great to see your swing. I need to take it slower. Looking forward to watching One Scythe Revolution to guide me in fixing it.
Thanks. Note to self…. Get me a scythe. Especially useful if SHTF happens
I cut 3 1/2 acres with an Austrian outfit, some for hay. With all due respect those wide, flowing swaths might do for furtile flat lands up north, but you won't get them on Tennessee sage grass growing out of hilly red clay. Cuts clover like butter, but not that sage grass.
When you mulch with the grass, won't it seed and start to grow by the garlic?
That looks like something I'm highly allergic to: hard work. Good luck with that. lol in all seriousness though you make it look easy, but I doubt it is. Good work my friend. Take care.
Are you familiar with Jim kovaleski......he scthyes acres. You could find videos on Pete kanaris u tube channel and he uses the hay as mulch also☺️
You must be kidding me. Bought mine two days ago. Sincronicity?
Standing dry grass has far lower nutrition and moisture. Also if you've waited that long for standing grass to dry, you will be in, what mid to late July and all the weeds have gone to seed--(Yikes!)...perhaps before the grasses head up the weeds and will surge ahead of the grass, outpace you and next year, you'll have a little more weeds than grass, which, depending on your goals may be a good thing because then plants like iron weed (Vernonia), butterfly weed (aesclepias tuberosa), saponica (and other introduced "weeds"), milk weeds, etc will bloom for the pollinators. It depends on your goal. Keeping grasses in a vegetative state, tips grown to a point, and not mature seed heads, but green or milk stage, will net you the highest nutrition, brix (sugar content--microbes love it!- and moisture content for mulching, smothering weeds, and cooling the soil. What a bonus. If you keep the soil cool, moisture stays in. If you let it get hot, it dries out. The worms will come up to meet the grass and chomp away much more readily when the ground is cool, than in hot ground with dry hay. We did this in our truck garden for years as a kid. Dad would mow, we kids gathered the windrows carried to mom and she weeded and dressed the crops with the grass. A great division of labor if you have the hands. Scythe On! Love what you all do!!
Don't know what happened to the formatting above. LoL!
Im interested in your scything technique.
Why do you prefer the one scythe revolution to the scythe supply one? I've never bought both but I want one when I have the space. Right now I use a japanese sickle because I'm small scale
The One Scythe Revolution option is better made, in my opinion... BUT it is also much more expensive. Scythe supply is a great place to start I think...
@@edibleacres Got it. I've heard of Scythe Supply from Jim Kovaleski also
I want to know how you start and maintain those large beds.
The garlic beds were initially tilled 2 years ago by the person who owns this land. He let us start farming that year and we started with annuals like sunflowers and corn.
@@edibleacres thank you. I am considering tilling but it’s controversial but I need the area clear so I can plant into and given the size of the land it’s impractical for me to do the card board method
Do you have guidance on when it’s appropriate to scythe vs mow with a bag as you’ve shown in some other videos? I have a regular suburban lawn I am planning to incorporate some of these techniques on!
Grass has to be considerably longer to be able to scythe it
I started scything on my suburban NJ lawn. Took me about an hour in the morning to do our roughly 1/3 acre. You do need to let it get pretty long, I would mow roughly every third week. "Appropriate"? If you need to keep a golf course standard for your HOA, a scythe probably won't cut it ;) Other than that, you can scythe at dawn on a weekend morning and not bother a soul. Try that with a powered mower ;)
Contrary to power mowers, scythes work best in wet grass, so after a rain or a very dewy morning is a perfect time to mow.
As for what tool to use (scythe vs. power mower), for me it depends on what cut I want, how much room I have for the scythe, and the time of year. For my front yard I usually just use the power mower since I'm in an urban area and use the clippings for mulch or chickens. If I'm in a tight area I usually have to use the power also, since the grass scythe works best when I get a full rotation with good follow-through. At the same time, it's currently firefly season and they are really harmed by power mowers so I'll use the scythe instead. I also like scythe mowing better and it's less of a chore and more fun. Also, scythes are cheaper in the long run than a gas mower whose carburetor seals get eaten by ethanol gasoline, or my electric mower which needs $100+ batteries that become unusable if they lose too much charge over the winter (thanks Ryobi...).
If your lawn is pretty flat and even from years of standard mowing, you could switch over to a manual rotary mower. That's what I used before the clover mix fully flushed out and replaced most of the grass. Now I just use a tiny electric weed whacker to knock down the few bits of grass that poke up through the clover canopy . . . . though my neighbors don't seem to appreciate the butterflys and bumble bees as much as I do. Something insane about 'neatness'.
why did he dulled the edge before scything?
Ergonomic thought: I see your back twisting in the video. That can be a problem if you do this a lot. Is there a better way that can avoid twisting? I'm relating this to the problem of twisting while lifting heavy loads, but maybe the scythe is light enough that the twisting is not a problem?
I don't know if there is an easy way to avoid that, and I think without a lot of weight associated it can be more of stretch and exercise than strain...
I also notice that he was squatting with each stroke. That suggests to ne that the scythe needs adjustment.
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Forgive me if this is a stupid question, but why not just mow the grass...?
reasonable question... The scythe lets grass get quite tall before you mow. 2-3 mowings a season... a mower would have to go every week or two or get absolutely bogged down
Is there a left-handed version? I couldn't do the right-left motion for very long, due to physical limitations.
There may be
Do you have two so you don't get worn out from swinging just one way (to the left)? Also, if you are always harvesting grass, does it ever grow less well or lose fertility in the soil below it? I'm always looking for these systems to show me a way to be able to have an abundant source of material for mulch and compost from something I can harvest on site without having to import fertility except for solar energy and atmospheric nitrogen and unlocking things in the soil parent material with biology. Grass to me seems to be the lowest thing on the garden alchemy chart so to speak on turning things into higher forms of usefulness. What are your thoughts ? I wondered if some years I might have to rotate it to where I don't harvest it off the area, but instead fence chickens in to manure it back into the soil
I think a low mow with a raking of material off, done once or twice a season, can be a very reliable and continual source of nutrient. The grass develops much deeper roots and renews with mainly inputs of sun, air and rain.
@@edibleacres This is what I've observed as well from limited and unfocused viewing and life experience. I figured if it ever slowed down I could just give it some broadforking, tea, or mob grazing to revitalize it but overall I've never seen grass suffer fertility issues from the soil. I think the question is what kinds of perennial seed mixtures and self sowing seeds are good to have in the field for the purpose of it being a harvestable nutrient base for compost and mulch. Utilizing atmospheric abundance to generate all of our compost needs is something that I have been pondering for a few years - not robbing Mary to pay Peter or Paul. Thank you for the reply. Your channel has just been so wonderful through the years and you have inspired me to chisel the water flow of landscape many times
Have never scythed and would love to have a go.
One question though. Doesn't constantly using one living product as a mulch create an extreme pH environment in the soil? Is it best to have a mixed mulch if using within a cropping system?
Sure, a mixed mulch is ideal. We'll also add leaves in the fall, woodchips if we can get them, compost from our chicken system, etc. This is just very nice low hanging fruit!
Do you water those garlic? How they get water
We don't water... We mulch!
Do you have to worry about ticks?
I don't have to worry about them. They exist and I get them and I get bites, but I don't worry about it.
If I may, I've created a mixture that has kept ticks off of me. In a spray bottle mix in 3rds skin so soft bath oil, apple cider distilled vinegar ( for chiggars), and water. I've heard listerine and peppermint oil works too.
How many toes do you lose a month?
Only one or two. I have one big toe left that I'm hoping to hold onto.
May I know what grass is that
I don't know grasses very well.
How often do you peen your blade and when? I'm in my third year of using a scythe. I know it needs to be peened as part of routine maintenance. I have peening gear. But I don't know when or how to use it.
I am in a similar boat. I have used the peen before and I can get an OK result but I have a LONG way to go to learn proper use :!
I do need a scythe. Can't imagine where I'd buy one.
Recently I noticed that you now use a lot of grass for your chicken. what about your food scraps resources?
So I was doing the same thing the other day: scything and then piling the cut grass as mulch around my trees & plants. But I wondered then, what's better to do: letting the grass lie down for a couple of days to dry, or mulch it immediately? I figure that with drying first, it composts slower, right? Oh wait - I had to wait till the last minute haha
I ... I just ... I can't dump all that seed into the beds I've maintained for 2 plus decades.
Nope.
Not gonna do it.
I mulch with grass for several years, and if you continue to do it, there is no problem. Just cover any (if any) weeds that grow through with more grass, and you are good to go.
No thanks
The beauty of all this is that there is no pressure to do anything I share! For me, a deep deposition of freshly mowed grass has performed remarkably well at feeding soil life, maintaining moisture and keeping weeds down. I get huge amounts of weeds when I don't mulch in this context, but to each their own for sure!
Lol
Compost kills moss and adds nitrogen to the ground....just sayin.
Where the h do you get an "obsolete" tool like this today?
He mentions two sources right in the introduction. I routinely find them at my preferred "antique" store, but that depends on living in what was farm country within a generation or so.
This is not obsolete, but a modern tool that was manufactured very recently. They are still made by the thousands especially in alpine Europe.
@@peterellis4262 yes, but there ar differences between american and european blades, as far as I know.
@@johnytwo What are you getting at? The question wasn't where do you get which kind.
@@peterellis4262 because EdibleAcres has european blade. I heard that american blades are thicker metal and are sharpened differently. Just info.
i want one but its $350-$400 or more yikes
Nah thanks I’d rather save up and buy a small tractor for my less than an acre land 😀 passion for tractors
Do what you want to do of course, but if/when diesel hits 10 a gallon or more, or isn't available for weeks at a time, a scythe wouldn't be the worst to have hanging in the barn...
@@edibleacres oh I have a scythe at home hanging in the barn! ☺️ as well as a grass strimmer. But as I sad I’ve an obsession to buy a tractor so yeah 😀
Suit yourself. I will say working this way is why I'm 55 years old, still eat what I want, and all my cholesterol and blood numbers are better then yours. I could buy a tractor, but sittin helps nobody.