History of the Lawn Mower

As long as there has been grass to cut, there has been a lawn mower. The earliest example of the lawn mower is the scythe. Edwin Beard Budding, an engineer, is credited with the invention of the lawn mower as we know it. Along with his financial partner John Ferrabee they were the first to patent and produce a reel mower. The lawn mower was first manufactured in 1827 and was a reel type lawn mower also known as a cylinder lawn mower. The first walk behind mower was manufactured in Richmond, Indiana by Elwood Mcguire in the 1870's and it used a similar design to Buddings. It wasn't until the 1930's when engines became smaller that the lawn mower became the rotary type we know today. A rotary type lawn mower is a lawn mower that spins a lawn mower blade in a horizontal fashion. There are two main types of these mowers commonly used. The first is the walk behind mower, also known as a push mower, and the second is a Riding type mower, known as a Lawn Tractor or Rider.

The walk behind lawn mower is usually powered by a small combustion engine. They are usually made with a steel deck and are started by pulling a retractable pull rope. Walk behind lawn mowers are sold as side discharge, mulcher, and rear bagging configurations. Some types even offer all three mowing options. MTD is the largest manufacturer of walk behind lawn mowers in the United States. MTD also brands it walk behind lawn mowers as Troybilt, Bolens, Yard Man, Cub Cadet, Huskee, and even White Outdoor. Other popular walk behind mower manufacturers are Husqvarana, Toro, American Yard Products, AYP, Craftsman, Scag, Exmark and John Deere.

The Riding Lawn Mower is also known as a Lawn Tractor. The Lawn tractor gets its name because it looks like a small agriculture type tractor. The Riding Mower gets it name because you sit or ride on the unit. The riding lawn mower usually has multiple rotary lawn mower blades that spin in a horizontal fashion. A riding lawn mower can have several different drive systems. The two most common are the hydrostatic drive system and the variable speed pulley drive system. Riding lawn mowers are usually used on large areas. They can usually be equipped with attachments such as snow plows, rototillers, snow blowers, yard vacuums, and more.

The newest advance in riding lawn mowers is the zero turn lawn mowers or Z mowers. These are usually driven by two hydrostatic type transmissions. This type of lawn mowers were originally built for commercial lawn cutters that required a tight turning radius and great maneuverability.

Original riding mowers and zero turn lawn mowers are manufactured by many companies. Like the walk behind unit, MTD is the largest manufacturer of riding lawn mowers in the United States. MTD also brands it riding lawn mowers and zero turn lawn mowers as Troybilt, Bolens, Yard Man, Cub Cadet, Huskee, and even White Outdoor. Other popular lawn mower manufacturers are Husqvarana, Toro, American Yard Products, AYP, Craftsman, Scag, Exmark, Ariens, John Deere, as well as many others.

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