New mower earns its stripes

publication date: Jun 19, 2008

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author/source: David Harris

One of the first of John Deere’s new rear roller mowers sold in the UK, an R54RKB is already earning its stripes at English Heritage’s Osborne House on the Isle of Wight.

The roller mower is being used to finish off the outside edges of the estate’s larger grass areas, following a cut with a John Deere X595 lawn tractor equipped with a rotary deck and rear-mounted collector. It is also used to stripe the grass borders around planted features on the House’s terrace gardens, which look out over the Solent.

“We’ve tried quite a few different lawnmowers at Osborne House over the years, but this is first time we’ve used a John Deere machine,” says senior gardener Nigel Brown.

“I have to admit I was a little bit sceptical at first when I saw it on the brochure, as it looked quite lightly built, but it’s proved to be a very good quality, solid mower, and we’re really pleased with it. It gives a wide 54cm (21in) cut, and it has a big grass box that fills right up, which saves you having to empty it too often.”