Can anyone recommend someone to mow our property? (Albuquerque: how much, house)

[Julie Ruin]

I'm so frustrated! We live out in Eldorado, and cannot seem to find anyone to mow our property (for a reasonable rate). Last year I had someone mow the property. She charged $70/hour for her riding mower and it took about three hours. We have just under half an acre; I thought that was totally reasonable. I tried contacting her again and can't seem to get in touch with her (though I'm still hoping!).

I contacted another company and they gave me an estimate of close to $600. That's way more than I want to spend.

Do you have someone mow your property? How much do they charge? Any recommendations?

Many thanks!

[cynanthus]

Julie- how about posting a "wanted" ad on Craigslist and then asking for references? I've had luck getting landscaping people that way (but not mowing - it's all trees where I am so nothing to mow). Good luck!

[Julie Ruin]

That's a good idea--I just may do that. Thanks!

[mortimer]

Originally Posted by Julie Ruin

Any recommendations?

Yes.

I would emphatically recommend a higher percentage
of natural vegetation that doesn't require mowing.

If you are irrigating grass on a half-acre that is just nuts.

[Julie Ruin]

mortimer--We aren't irrigating anything. We get vegetation because of where the leach field is. There's nothing we can do about that.

ETA--I just realized there was a typo in my original post. We have an acre and a half, not a half acre. The ridiculous overgrown part of the property is probably about a third of an acre or so.

[mortimer]

Originally Posted by Julie Ruin

... the leach field ... overgrown part of the property
is probably about a third of an acre or so.

OK, a third of an acre is 14,520 sq ft.

Wow, three hours to mow that? Did your mower person tow the
mower around using a Mercedes GL? When I was a strapping young
lad, I used to mow, by push-mower, about 20k sq ft in 2.5 hours.

From what I've read, a 5-bedroom home might require 6,000 sq ft.
but let's say that 14.5k sq ft is right.

What do your neighbors do? When I want a contractor for anything
I ask friends and neighbors who did work for them and made them
happy. I also found a house painter by asking the guy who wired
up my swamp cooler who he ( a perfectionist ) would use.

Also, do you have a company that services your septic system?
Can they recommend anyone? You are not the only person in
NM with such a problem. There has to be some sort of solution
that involves native plants for some part of the leach field that
don't need much tending - even with increased moisture.

[Julie Ruin]

I guess I haven't been very clear. The woman who mowed our property last year mowed the whole thing. But mostly what needs help is the leach field.

That's a very good idea about asking the company that services our septic system. I'll give them a call. Thanks.

[mortimer]

Originally Posted by Julie Ruin

I guess I haven't been very clear. The woman who
mowed our property last year mowed the whole thing. ...

That's OK. What I was originally trying to determine is why
you feel you need to have your lot mowed at all. Aren't the
lots in Eldorado pretty-much all native vegetation?

In N. Sandia Acres and Sandia Heights, most people, if they have any
"custom" lawn or garden stuff at all, just have a small patch and let
the rest of the lot ( usually about .7 to 1.2 acres ) stay "natural."

The lots where people cut down everything don't really look very
good. It's a huge expense and takes away from the neighborhood.

If you could make all or part of the leach field "natural" then your
savings would be even greater. Most of the N. Sandia Acres properties
have a septic system and I almost never notice a mowed leach field
as I ride my bike through there whilst commuting.

I would assume that like most people, anything you can do to reduce
the stress in your life would be welcome. I don't miss mowing my
lawn in Ohio - decades ago - at all.

[old bird]

Albuquerque hasn't gotten much rain this year, Eldorado has. Our "natural" vegetation is easily hitting two to three feet high all over and deeper over leach fields (my leach field was well over 6' deep). This creates a fire hazard and makes a mess when the snow melts in the spring.

I usually mow once a year, this year it will be twice, if not three times. I usually do my own, although when my neighbor is in town I borrow their bigger lawn tractor and it goes much faster. Ask around, maybe a neighbor has a rider you can borrow to do it yourself or pay a neighborhood teenager a few bucks an hour.

[Julie Ruin]

Thanks!

I heard back from the woman who mowed it last year for us and she's able to do it again. Phew. The leach field is just terrible this year.

And yes, if you drive around Eldorado, you can see that lots of people have this problem this year. You can often tell where someone's leach field is because of the massive weeds that have sprung up seemingly overnight.