Yards should be green, not streets

As soon as it gets the least little warm, the unofficial state car turns out in droves, tooling around town to rental properties, neighbors’ and family yards. No license or ID is required, but you still have to stop for signs.

I’m speaking, of course, about riding lawn mowers.

They’re so plentiful and frequent passersby, that Mom was wont to remark one time, “Someone is going by.” “Who is it?” I asked. “Don’t know,” she replied, “can’t see the mower.”

I’ve never minded if someone mows on the weekend, early in the morning, holidays or even later at night. Hey, I’m busy, I know you accomplish things when and where you can squeeze them in. What bothers me, is grass clippings thrown into the road.

All across towns and cities, I see clippings strewn about on roadways. Many times, the lawns the grass came from are pristine, nicely trimmed works of art. Then you glance at the roadway. Not so nice. I can only imagine what people think if they are visitors to the town and see that.

More than looking unkempt, clippings can stop up storm sewers, causing serious problems. I, for one, would prefer the city sewer system did not fail, especially if there happens to be yet another tropical storm like the one that swung up this way last summer.

It also causes a very real hazard to motorcyclists, bicyclists and even automobiles. Grass clippings contain 85 per- cent water, which causes slickness. Essentially, they create a summer “ice” field on the roadway. The clippings are also rich in nutrients, which could contaminate groundwater.

Taking all these things into consideration, it may be time to either invest in a bagger device affixed to the mower or use a lawn sweeper hooked onto the back. If that is an expense or takes too much time you can’t afford, there are other options.

Instead of blowing the grass toward the roadway, try blowing in to the interior of the yard for as many passes as it takes. Or, you can blow the grass into the road to prevent clumping, then when you’re done, “mow” the grass back into the yard.

Whatever you choose, know it is helping keep those on the road from skidding, our water from getting polluted and our sewers from backing up.

Don’t just shrug at me when you read this, either, and roll your eyes. Even if you don’t care about the reasons I listed above, you might care to know that it is illegal in many municipalities. If an ordinance does not specifically state that throwing grass clippings onto streets is illegal, it can fall under the public nuisance ordinance.

A public nuisance is: any thing, act, occupation, condition or use of property that shall continue for such length of time as to substantially annoy, injure or endanger the public comfort, health or safety; render the soil, water, air, or any article of food or drink impure, noxious, unwholesome or unhealthy; and unlawfully and substantially interfere with, obstruct or tend to obstruct, or render dangerous for passage, any street, alley, highway, navigable body of water or other public way, or the use of public property.

So, next time you get out the “state” vehicle, take a few minutes to keep the streets looking nice, help out travelers and help keep yourself from getting a fine. A couple extra passes with the mower are well worth avoiding safety hazards and visits from law enforcement.

My place is no show place, I’ll be the first to admit that. But I make sure the green on my property, stays on my property.

Besides, if the grass stays in your yard, you can make “birds nests” out of the lawn clippings and who doesn’t want to do that? You can even make a mama robin and eggs for her to sit on!