Edwin Beard Budding (1796–1846)

 Budding's mower was designed primarily to cut the lawn on sports grounds and extensive gardens, as a superior alternative to the scythe, and was granted a British patent on 31 August 1830.

It took ten more years and further innovations to create a machine that could be worked by animals, and sixty years before a steam-powered lawn mower was built.

The first machine produced was 19 inches in width with a frame made of wrought iron. The mower was pushed from behind with the motive power coming from the rear land roller which drove gears to transfer the drive to the knives on the cutting cylinder; the ratio was 16:1. There was another roller placed in between the cutting cylinder and the land roller which was adjustable to alter the height of cut. On cutting, the grass clippings were hurled forward into a tray like box. It was soon realized, however, that an extra handle was needed in front of the machine which could be used to help pull it along.

Two of the earliest Budding machines sold went to Regent's Park Zoological Gardens in London and the Oxford Colleges. In an agreement between John Ferrabee and Edwin Budding, dated 18 May 1830, Ferrabee paid the costs of development, obtained letters of patent and acquired rights to manufacture, sell and license other manufacturers in the production of lawn mowers.

Budding realised that a similar device could be used to cut grass if the mechanism was mounted in a wheeled frame to make the blades rotate close to the lawn's surface. Budding went into partnership with a local engineer, John Ferrabee, and together they made mowers in a factory at Thrupp near Stroud.

As mower technology advanced, various innovations were added. Petrol motors guaranteed a steady rate of cylinder rotation and consequently a more even cut. Self- propulsion brought further improvements in performance and took the slog out of pushing the mower over large lawns. Adding more blades enhanced the quality of the cut, perfect for high-quality playing surfaces such as golf and bowling greens, where the “nap” of the grass is all-important.

So effective was the design that in essence the cylinder mower is still the same beast today, more than 180 years later. It was only after a century or more of cylinder mower pre-eminence that the new kid on the block arrived: the Rotary Mower.

Source: Wikipedia

Images: Believed to be in the Public Domain or used with permission

Lawn Mower from 1888

The design of the Lawn Mower remained much the

same for over 180 years