It was not that long ago that home lawn care was a matter of having a goat, a few cows and maybe some other live stock roam freely in your yard. These living grass cutting machines could chew and mulch your grass and fertilize it too. But in this day and age, unless you live on a large farm where cows will still do the job of trimming your grass for you, there are some more advanced grass cutting tools that will make any routine yard care task easier and faster.

The modern day workhorse for cutting grass is of course, a lawnmower.  Homeowners can be very passionate about the appeal of their lawn and a good regular cut is actually healthy for your grass.  A reliable lawnmower with a sharp blade is your most important piece of yard care equipment.  If you’re in the market for a new mower you’ll find that prices can vary greatly for a range of mower types and by brand name. But you don’t have to break the bank to get a good cut.

Your mower is a machine that needs regular maintenance and the better you care for your lawnmower, the better it will cut your lawn season after season.  A well maintained machine will last a long time, saving you money in the long run.  Refer to the mower’s owner manual for recommended maintenance and follow those guidelines.

Keeping the lawn neat involves more just mowing, though.  A trimmer is a good option for cutting over grown grass along walls and fences.  As with mowers, you have many choices when it comes to brand names and features including manual trimmers.  Somehow, a good cut just does not look complete until you’ve trimmed the long grass around decks, fences and patio stones.

Most people go for a power trimmer with a plastic line that needs to be replaced every so often.  The plastic line cuts grass, weeds and small plants with no trouble. You should always wear safety glasses and ear plugs when using one of these bad boys.  And always be certain to operate the trimmer when you are well clear of people or animals.  These machines are relatively inexpensive for most residential lawn care jobs but a gas powered trimmer that is contractor grade can easily run a few hundred bucks.

A spreader or two is vital for evenly laying out fertilizer, weed killer and other lawn treatments that can help keep the lawn weed free and looking lush and green. One sort is like a small lawnmower with no blade, just a tub with small holes and a roller that dispense material. Easy to use and long-lasting, they’re adjustable for a variety of applications.

The second type of spreader is a hand-held unit, usually plastic with a rotary handle. They’re perfect for specialized applications of seed for patching small lawn areas, distributing dry fertilizer beads and so forth.

This might seem obvious but you’ll want a couple of good rakes too.  Rake away heavy amount of leaves in the fall because leaves left on the ground can cause grass to overheat or to get too little water.  In areas that get winter snow, at the end of the season the grass will be compressed into thatch.

If your lawn is not raked when necessary, it can prevent aeration from reaching the soil leading to uneven or patchy growth patterns. De-thatching requires rigorous raking with a sturdy, wide tooth rake. The more malleable fan rake is great for loose grass trimmings and leaves.

Other basic yard care essentials include:

- a long handled fork for turning soil

- a long-handled shovel or spade for a variety of gardening tasks

- a quality garden hose and nozzle

- garden gloves, safety glasses, ear plugs

- a sharpe pair of hand prunning tools

You can get a lot done with just these basic yard care essentials and the better you maintain your tools, the longer your lawn care equipment will last.  You don’t have to spend a lot of money.  If you’re on a budget (and even if you’re not), check out neighbourhood yard sales because you can often find these yard care items in excellent condition and at bargain prices.