Cutting grass in a green way: Bethesda woman grows Solar Mowing — Gazette.Net

Before Lyn DeWitt used to mow her lawn, she would take all of her children inside of her Bethesda house and shut the windows to avoid the mowers fumes and loud motor. As the communications director for the Audubon Naturalist Society and a generally environmentally-aware citizen, DeWitt decided that she had enough of the gasoline-powered lawn mower.

Thats when she decided to harness the same sun that helped the lawn grow to help cut it her company Solar Mowing emerged.

In 2009, DeWitt bought her first battery-powered lawn mower for roughly $400. Although it was more expensive than the average gasoline-powered lawn mower by about $200, she said it was worth the investment because it was quiet, convenient and did not contribute to air pollution. She then found a small company in Virginia that agreed to outfit her truck with a photovoltaic solar panel and storage batteries. Thanks to the solar panels, she could charge her mower all day as she worked.

I come from a long line of entrepeneurs who always had their own businesses, so it felt very natural for me to start a business out of this, DeWitt said. My uncles had a lawn equipment business, my father sold Christmas trees in the winter and flowers in the spring and summer and my uncle owned a small fruit farm.

She invested approximately $30,000 on the truck, solar panels, mowers and other equipment. She enlisted the help of her 14-year-old daughter, Anna, and several young adults.

Since 2009, the company has grown from one to six mowers, eight trimmers as well as three trucks outfitted with solar panels and a dozen employees. On June 20, 2013, it was green-certified by Montgomery County Green Business Certification Program, meaning that the program decided the company had demonstrated effective environmental stewardship. It received a runner-up award at Bethesda Greens Gala in 2011 in a category recognizing local green services.

According to the Solar Mowing website, the company abides by a few unique standards First, they do not mow according to a set schedule but instead, when it is healthiest for the lawn.

Lyn is mowing the lawn so its best for the lawn in the long-term, unlike some services who just do it on a schedule and theyre not really thinking about the best interest of your lawn, Bethesda resident and client of three years Andrea Witt said.

Also, the company leaves the grass at 3-3.5 inches tall, which prevents the germination of weed seeds and increases nutrient uptake.

Finally, Solar Mowing makes sure to leave clippings on their customers lawns. The clippings, which workers mulch into a fine product that falls between the cut grass, are beneficial to the lawn because they feed the soil.

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