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Was 8 or 9 when I started mowing the lawn. Was expected to either weed the garden or do the hand tilling before planting (I took the hand tilling up front to avoid weeding, let my Sisters handle weeding)
Was also expected from same age to shovel snow and make sure my Mom could get out of the driveway at 5-5:30am since she worked at a hospital - and if it was a no school snow day, the whole driveway and walks were to be cleared.
Key word - expected - along with the obligatory "I/WE weren't put here on Earth to be YOUR servants" speech (at least some form of it) from my Parents to us kids 2 to 3 times a week.
The worst part was having to pull the starter cord! It would slap back sometimes and leave a whipping scar on my leg.
No how no way would I let a kid use the riding mower. My BF was 17 when he did summers with a lawn service place. They had strict safety regulations so he knew what was expected and how to operate them properly.
Daddy would start it, and i push-mowed at 9. the next year, i did everything.
at 12, we got a self-propelled. never used a riding mower. not then, not now.
My kids get an allowance for the garbage and laundry and would pay more for mowing, but even with the allowance we give them they don't really care about the reward because we're strict about what we let them spend money on (don't be wasteful). So essence, getting them to do chores, which they still do, is a lesson-learning fail while trying to teach the right thing. They only care about video games and only want to spend on digital content (wasteful because it gets replaced soon after). I guess we gotta let loose on the vice grip a bit. Slowly but surely...
Under 10 using a riding mower. 3 out of 4 of us did, the 4th wasn't mechanically inclined. We were all active outdoor kids. Dad had a push mower for tight areas but I don't think we ever used that. We also had a sweeper which taught us how to tow - and back up. Incredibly beneficial as we got closer to driving age.
No allowance but a great tan as someone posted above! This was expected as part of our chores.
My daughter is 13 and just started. She hates it, but we pay her: $20, half in her savings account and half for her to spend as she wishes. We don't give a separate allowance just yet.
Ok, here’s the deal. I’ve known some young parents who refuse to let their kids mow the lawn attributing it to slave labor or too dangerous for their children to operate.
What is your age and how old were you when you started mowing the lawn?
I’m 50 and I was 8 when I started pushing the mower. Dad conned me by saying how strong I was and asked me if I could start the mower, I did. He then said how big I was and asked me if I could push the mower. I couldn’t reach the top bar but I could push the bar in the middle. He taught me how to turn it off. There was a lever I was to push with my foot and it would turn off.
I've never understood those that have moral qualms about pressing their children into labor for the household.
The summer between 3rd and 4th grade. I was a tall kid though.
I was twelve when my Dad taught me to mow. He was a bit of a lawn perfectionist, though (golf course-like lines on *his* lawn!), so when he found that I was not doing the job to his satisfaction, I was soon relegated to other lawn care and gardening tasks, which was fine by me.
It's one of the few times in my childhood that I got away with doing a less than stellar job; I still think fondly of my Dad these days whenever I work on my own yard and am glad that he took the time to show me how to care for a lawn even though mine isn't nearly as nice as his always was.
My nephew began to mow the lawn with the push mower with guidance and supervision when he was ten. He began using the riding mower when he was thirteen (and loved it--just like his granddad). My niece (age thirteen) is in the process of being taught to mow, but has been doing gardening tasks since she was toddling around her maternal grandfather's huge vegetable plot.
Ok, here’s the deal. I’ve known some young parents who refuse to let their kids mow the lawn attributing it to slave labor or too dangerous for their children to operate.
What is your age and how old were you when you started mowing the lawn?
I’m 50 and I was 8 when I started pushing the mower. Dad conned me by saying how strong I was and asked me if I could start the mower, I did. He then said how big I was and asked me if I could push the mower. I couldn’t reach the top bar but I could push the bar in the middle. He taught me how to turn it off. There was a lever I was to push with my foot and it would turn off.
I'm a woman. I first mowed a lawn (a very small one) when I was in my 30s and bought my first house. It's definitely not something I would've been asked to do as a kid. Also, I pay for someone to do it now because I just don't want to. The novelty wore off quickly!
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