Mowing

Winchester Public Works employee Donald "Duck" Lyle mows the tall grass along the right of way of Rolling Hills Lane in Winchester Industrial Park. The nearly daily rainfall last week caused many delays in the department's mowing schedule. James Mann jmann@winchestersun.com

The Nicholasville City Commission accepted the bid of Nicholasville-based Curry Services for the mowing of Maple Grove Cemetery during Monday's meeting. The bid came in at $1,685 per week, city purchasing agent Pauline Horsley said. In years past, inmates from the Jessamine County Detention Center did much of the mowing, but commissioner Andy Williams said the city elected to bid out the work because the inmate labor pool was dwindling. “They're letting quite a few of them out, and we're just not getting that quality that we were getting before,” Williams said.

(Sun photo by James Mann)The "Keep Off Grass" sign at the rear of the Clark County Courthouse didn't pertain to custodian Denny Arvin, who was mowing the lawn for the first time this year. Signs of spring, which arrives next Wednesday, including warmer temperatures and growing flowers and grass, are evident throughout the city and county.

Danville will pay $43,595 to Devine Creations to mow the city cemeteries this year. City officials said it was less than last year's contract price. Commissioners also voted to pay $41,505 to Growing Dreams to mow city property this year.

Dear Editor: Farmers who live on secondary and county roads have to mow the rights of way in front of their farms. The constant throwing of trash by passers-by makes this task dangerous and costly. The broken glass bottles, which are difficult to see, puncture the tractor tires. Please teach your children not to throw trash out. Adults are supposed to know better. Jeannette Germann Danville

MITCHELLSBURG - Mowing season will begin soon and help is needed to mow the Chambers Cemetery off Scrubgrass Road. Jackie Lamb, who has been mowing the cemetery for the past few years, is asking for help to mow the cemetery. Send donations to Lamb at 295 Whites Ridge, Parksville, KY 40464.

It's difficult to envision mowing your lawn this spring when frost greets you nearly morning. Yet that first spring mowing, usually in late March, begins your most important annual lawn duties. The first mowing makes the lawn look spring-like and very attractive. Regular mowing hardens the grass for drought and heat stresses later on. So when the first clump of grass grows above the mowing height, mow, even if a lot of the yard doesn't need to be mowed yet. Not all grasses start growing at the same time.

Nine years ago this month Brandon Mills of Liberty was looking for some kind of job to help him pay his upcoming college bills. He decided mowing yards would generate the money he needed. "It was 2000, and I had graduated from (Casey County) high school and was going on to Somerset Community College in the fall and needed a job to help pay my tuition and books and other expenses," says Mills. "Mowing lawns was a good pick because I could do it on my schedule and also get pretty good money," he says.

Conventional wisdom has it that the last thing the stereotypical male adult wants to do when he gets home from work is mow the grass - or any other chore on the so-called "honey-do list. " Bobby Middleton neither complies with the convention nor fits the stereotype. "I actually love doing lawnwork," says the 46-year-old Stanford man. But there is a little bit of incentive that adds to Middleton's enjoyment. He gets money for it. Middleton is a member of the groundskeeping crew at Centre College.

Spring has arrived, and many residents are making plans to mow their lawns. Mowing the lawn behind the Clark County Courthouse for the first time this year was Denny Arvin early Tuesday morning. It was a brisk, not so spring-like, 32 degrees when Arvin was mowing.

It's difficult to envision mowing your lawn this spring when frost or snow greets you nearly every morning. Yet, that first spring mowing, usually in late March, begins your most important annual lawn duties. The first mowing makes the lawn look spring-like and very attractive. Subsequent regular mowing hardens the grass for drought and heat stresses later on. So when the first clump of grass grows above the mowing height, mow, even if a lot of the yard doesn't need to be mowed yet. Not all grasses start growing at the same time.

The Nicholasville City Commission accepted the bid of Nicholasville-based Curry Services for the mowing of Maple Grove Cemetery during Monday's meeting. The bid came in at $1,685 per week, city purchasing agent Pauline Horsley said. In years past, inmates from the Jessamine County Detention Center did much of the mowing, but commissioner Andy Williams said the city elected to bid out the work because the inmate labor pool was dwindling. “They're letting quite a few of them out, and we're just not getting that quality that we were getting before,” Williams said.

With summer fast approaching, the Winchester-Clark County Parks and Recreation Department is gearing up for a busy season. The July 4 Celebration committee is working to finalize plans for this year's event, which will be Tuesday, July 3, at Lykins Park. Last year at this time, there was some doubt as to whether the department would be able to afford the expensive fireworks show - the signature feature of the celebration - due to a lack of funds. But committee chairman Tim Smith said things look a lot better this year, that the committee is “way ahead of this time last year” and is working hard to put the finishing touches on its plans and securing the necessary funding.

Dollars for Scholars recipients announced The Danville/Boyle County Dollars for Scholars Foundation has announced 67 scholarships totaling $36,000. Recipients will receive monetary awards July 14 at Danville Country Club.  Recipients and parents are invited to attend the awards reception. Dollars for Scholars recipients are: Kristofer Adams, Tyesha Alcorn, Courtney Ballard, Caitlyn Barrett, Ashley Baxter, Amber Billingsly, Stephanie Blandford, Shannan Brown, Austin Burnside, Courtney Chumbley, Emily couture, Tyler Crowe, Nathaniel Deaton, Olga Durham, Lucas East, Eric Evans, Bryan Ferrell, Alex Fowler, Alexandria Gautier, Amanda Goggin, Devon Hale, Jennifer Harris, Nicholas Henson, Gretchen Horton, Victoria Jeffries, Jonathan Kenyon, Kathryn Lanham, Kenton Lee, Shannon Leech, Olivia Logue, Jake Matano, Casey Mattingly, David McChesney, Bryson McGuire, Max Meckes, Paul Megilligan, Hannah Mountjoy, Heath Mountjoy, Hunter Mountjoy, Madeline Mullins, Hadon Pike, Molly Preston, Christopher Railey, Hannah Raines, Vanessa Ramos, Shelby Ransdell, Patrick Reid, Samantha Rivard, Ethan Robinson, Samantha Roney, Michael Ross, Ala Ruiz, Brett Simpson, Krystal Smith, Sarah Tamme, Jerica Tudor, Christian Turner, Hayley Wayne, Lanah Will, Kaitlin Wood, Mackenzie Wood and Deanna Yocum.

Mowers throughout Clark County are being brought back into service as the weather begins to warm and the first day of spring arrives on Sunday. Howard Phillips of Colby Road cut a huge swath of grass in a yard on Moundale Avenue with a five-foot-wide mower Thursday afternoon. Phillips, who is retired, cuts  lawns each summer for extra income.

HARRODSBURG — Travis Taylor hadn’t been married long when his father-in-law from Frankfort gave him a gift. “He owns a lawn care company, and he decided he would give me a mower,” says Taylor. As it turns out, the mower became a gift that has kept on giving — and mowing. After using the mower on his own lawn, Taylor came to the realization that he had the time and could use the money if he mowed other yards. “I placed little fliers with my name and phone number on it in every market and store around Harrodsburg,” he says.

As I trimmed the yard on a recent cool September night I thought about summer's swift passing. The nip in the air and the need to locate the lone functioning headlight on the lawn mower early on let me know the outdoor entertaining season had set sail. All the promise of sun-filled days laid out end to end was over. I thought about the parties we'd managed to attend and hold. I started thinking about one last get together and axed the idea as I searched for the handkerchief I had tucked in my pocket to blow my nose on. Inside, my husband still lay piled under a couple of blankets, chilling with the stubborn aftereffects of the ?

Stories of large corporations and cities using goats to graze green spaces are cropping up all over the country. Now Bluegrass Station in Fayette County is partnering with the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture and area goat producers to green up some landfill sites. Bluegrass Station maintains more than 50 acres of decades-old, capped landfills at the rural location. Mowing the turf and keeping fences clear of vegetation is a laborious task that can cost between $45 and $55 per acre.

The "official" symbol of the United Methodist Church is a cross and a flame. "I understand that it is one of the 75 most recognizable symbols of any kind in the world," said the Rev. Quentin Scholtz, pastor of Danville's Centenary United Methodist Church. But, Scholtz noted, Centenary has two sets of its own, homemade symbols that "even go beyond" the cross and flame as far as representing the local United Methodist congregation. One consists of three crosses on a hillside next to the church's Christian Life Center.

Wildlife seems to be everywhere in spring. Birds are nesting, ducks and geese are taking their young for a swim and sometimes deer fawn can even be spotted resting under a bush or in a field. And sometimes young wildlife is spotted out on its own, appearing to be orphaned. The absence of adult wildlife often prompts people to step in to try and help the young animal ? but don't! Young animals are almost never abandoned. The best thing to do is leave young wildlife alone. "Mostly, people find fawns while mowing a pasture or cutting hay," said David Yancy, a big game program biologist for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources.