Don’t Try This Potentially Dangerous Lawn Mower TikTok Hack
While we’re not the biggest fans of traditional green grass lawns , we know that such a longstanding norm of American homeownership won’t disappear overnight. But no matter what you think about lawns, if you’re stuck with their care, you’re probably open to any strategies to reduce the amount of work required to keep it in great (or even mediocre) shape.
In your quest to cut down on the time you spend tending your lawn, you may have stumbled upon a viral TikTok video demonstrating a technique for filling gaps in a mottled lawn that experts warn can be dangerous. Here’s what you need to know about the TikTok lawn hack and why you should skip it.
What does lawn care include?
On June 21, Oliver Joseph (also known as @roamwildwitholiver ), who according to his profile is on a “home gardening journey” , posted a video on TikTok titled “The #1 Gardening Hack I Learned from Dad”, which has since has since garnered over 2.2 million views. The goal of the strategy is to hide the bald patches on the lawn, which are formed as a result of higher than usual temperatures.
As it turns out, Father Joseph’s trick (which he calls “hair grafting”) is to remove the grass catcher from the mower and open the rear cover to redistribute the cuttings across the lawn. According to Joseph, the haircut also contributes to the growth of bald patches.
Why is hacking potentially dangerous?
As several lawn experts and TikTok users pointed out in the comments of the video, while the hack does accomplish what it set out to do, it also leaves the person mowing the lawn vulnerable to injury.
This is because when you leave the back of the mower open, other than grass clippings, other objects in your path, such as rocks, can pass through and out of the mower, flying towards you at top speed. These projectiles can injure you or any other people or animals in their path, especially if you hit your face or eyes. In other words, this hack is not worth the risk.