Hello
ODK History Lovers
This is a less common article in the
History Forum, in that it discusses
an implement that is not a lawn mower, but an
edger and hedger.
The mechanisation of the lawnmower did not take place in isolation.
With the advent of the garden bed and surrounding walls or boundaries
to properties came the need for not just trimming grass but for also
trimming edges - to say nothing about hedges.
Traditionally, it was back-breaking work, if doing the lawn or garden edges
with manual shears or clippers. Hedges, as aesthetic improvements, were also
done by manual shears or clippers.
Post WWII, mechanised lawnmower attachments appeared for edging. Some were
quite novel, but none seemed to be
versatile, lightweight and flexible
enough to do both edges and hedges of all sorts and varieties.
The
Roto Trimmer was an Australian invention - by
Patrick Joseph Manley of
Sydney, who adapted the small, lightweight electric motor (then becoming popular)
to a single handle bar, that could be
hand-held and rotated to cut at any angle.
TO BE CONTINUED ...