# Am I being a good neighbor?



## Milawnnut (Jun 10, 2019)

My neighbor has asked me a couple times while I've been enjoying the mow if I could help him out with a trim. Good neighbor but not really interested in lawn maintenance. I don't mind, his lawn probably measures 5-600 sqft. I'm curious though, am I maybe "shooting myself in the foot"? Could I be bringing weed seeds and such back with the mower? Just a thought.


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## CenlaLowell (Apr 21, 2017)

Milawnnut said:


> My neighbor has asked me a couple times while I've been enjoying the mow if I could help him out with a trim. Good neighbor but not really interested in lawn maintenance. I don't mind, his lawn probably measures 5-600 sqft. I'm curious though, am I maybe "shooting myself in the foot"? Could I be bringing weed seeds and such back with the mower? Just a thought.


I would not do that because before you know it you'll be cutting his grass Everytime you cut yours. My father in law started this with a neighbor and now his been cutting both yards for two seasons


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## Milawnnut (Jun 10, 2019)

@CenlaLowell your Father in law must either be a really nice guy or really enjoy mowing (perhaps both). It started as a simple help a neighbor out because he asked. It still is for the most part. Im much more hands on about my rehab this year and they let their lawn go once until the weeds started to seed. I figured it's better if I give it a chop before it all drifted over. So lately I have done it without being asked. I figure by helping them I'm helping myself, right? Last time I thought to myself, could I be dragging that "bad ju ju" via mower back onto my lawn? But I guess the better question is, how do I ever expect them to do/hire lawn maintenance if I swoop in and do it every time it's gets long.


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## TN Hawkeye (May 7, 2018)

Milawnnut said:


> @CenlaLowell your Father in law must either be a really nice guy or really enjoy mowing (perhaps both). It started as a simple help a neighbor out because he asked. It still is for the most part. Im much more hands on about my rehab this year and they let their lawn go once until the weeds started to seed. I figured it's better if I give it a chop before it all drifted over. So lately I have done it without being asked. I figure by helping them I'm helping myself, right? Last time I thought to myself, could I be dragging that "bad ju ju" via mower back onto my lawn? But I guess the better question is, how do I ever expect them to do/hire lawn maintenance if I swoop in and do it every time it's gets long.


I would definitely mow your lawn first and then spray the mower clean after mowing his lawn. Be really good if you could clean it on his property too. If the lawn is that small maybe ask if he minds if you hit it with some RTU herbicide from Lowe's. It would reduce your chances of seeding weeds into your lawn.


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## pennstater2005 (Jul 17, 2017)

I have a single woman neighbor who has had back issues. She mows with her self propelled most of the time. When it's really hot or she looks tired I mow her large backyard.

Easy for me on the rider. She motioned me over one time and said you don't need to do that.

I just smiled and said, "I'm drinking beer and listening to music.... I'm good". Being neighborly is always good. And I don't mow it if I don't have the time or feel like it and she's ok with that too.


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## FlowRider (Apr 7, 2019)

Here is a true story this reminded me of:

A young country boy in Alabama grew up and went to law school.

When he passed the bar exam and got his license to practice law, he opened up a little storefront office in the town square near the courthouse. His first week in the office he sat all alone all day, no business, no phone calls.

The next Monday, an old farmer came through the door, all hot and bothered. He said "Young man, I have talked to every lawyer in this town, and none of them will take my case. Will you help me?"

The young lawyer had nothing better to do, so he offered the man a glass of ice water, and asked him what the problem was.

The old man owned a pig farm, and raised champion hogs. He had a prize boar hog, and the pig farmer next door had a champion sow. They worked out a handshake deal where they would mate the pair and split the litter evenly.

When the piglets were born, his neighbor would only let the other farmer have the pick of the litter. So he decided to not get taken advantage of, and went to hire a lawyer.

The young lawyer agreed to handle his case, and he worked out a deal where the two farmers went back to evenly splitting the litter, and staying good neighbors and now good friends.

A year later, the two farmers came to see the young lawyer again.

It turns out that they had struck oil on their farms, in the now famous Tuscaloosa Trend. The farmers both wanted the young lawyer to represent their families in the negotiations for the oil & gas royalties.

All three of these men became wealthy, more money than they ever dreamed of, all made possible by keeping them good neighbors.

That young lawyer would go onto to become a U.S. Supreme Court Justice, Justice Hugo Black....

So the moral of the story is, being a good neighbor may be a great move someday...!


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## Milawnnut (Jun 10, 2019)

@TN Hawkeye Good suggestions. I've thought about just treating his lawn when I do mine. I do a blanket herbicide app where our properties meet so it would be easy to just mix up another batch and hit his. Good for him, good for me! It would be kind of a personal challenge to see if I could get his lawn in order.

@pennstater2005 feels good to help a neighbor. Of course, when I'm not feeling it I just pass until the next mow.

@FlowRider sooooo ... you're saying if I keep mowing my neighbors lawn I'll become rich?! Done. Great story btw!


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## OhDeere (Apr 12, 2019)

I've definitely been there before, with both lawn care and snow removal. After a while they just began to expect it to be done by me. They would just wait until everything was a mess, knowing my tolerance threshold was lower than theirs. It's a slippery slope. When I moved I stopped doing favors that could lead to regular commitments unless I was okay with that. For example, an older woman living alone but not a family with healthy teenage children who can do the work instead.


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## social port (Jun 19, 2017)

pennstater2005 said:


> I just smiled and said, "I'm drinking beer and listening to music.... I'm good".


 :lol: I'm glad that this thread came back around. I missed this the first time.


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