So I have your standard sized suburban yard. Front is maybe 20' x 30', back is bigger, maybe 75X35.

So being incredibly busy, and more incredibly lazy, I pay some lawn mowing service $140 a month to mow the lawn. This is Florida, so it's 12 months a year. In addition I pay Truegreen Chemlawn about $650 a year for fertilizing, etc.

This is house I plan to retire in and that is only about 7 years away. Looking at controlling costs. Let's eliminate one thing right off the bat...... doing it myself with walking mower is just never going to happen.

Considering 2 alternatives

1. Trying to eliminate so much grass that it could be done with a weed-eater or electric mower. In front I could widen the driveway with pavers, put a big palm tree in with large island around it, stuff like that.

Might be a little harder in back, but we're putting in sunroom, and we could expand the patio areas.

Advantages to this would be No Mowing, no Chemlawn, and reduced watering costs. Disadvantages would be the costs asscoiated with it, and the possibility the lawn would look weird if not done well.

2. Or get a riding lawnmower. Would still have the Chemlawn costs, and the water costs. What I wonder is whether the riding mower is so fast and easy that it's not a major pain in the butt come mowing time. I've never used one.