Can you see it? Just hoving into view over the hill?
That’s February, the month when blackthorn flowers in the hedges announce the arrival of Spring in the countryside.
This year we have had such mild weather that many of us softy southerners haven’t seen a flake of snow.
And this means that the grass has continued growing throughout the winter months – in fact given a dry day it’s a good time to give it a light trim.
But in another five or six weeks, and given that we don’t have a sudden cold snap, the grass will start its first vigorous Spring flush and we’ll have to get ready for weekly trims from then until autumn.
If you have a large area of grass you may well look at purchasing a ride-on or garden tractor so here are ten top tractors all great value for money and available for delivery usually within a few days.
Here’s the first, a neat little machine, the Lawnflite Mini Rider 60RDE Ride-On Mower.
It has a Briggs & Stratton 190cc engine to power it and a cut of 60cm meaning it can easily get through most garden gates.
Large rear wheels mean it can handle slippery surfaces and wet lawns and the Transmatic transmission means it’s easy to control – it has six gears. And it has a tight turning circle.
It has six cutting heights from 38mm to 95mm and has three ways of dealing with the clippings – mulching or collecting or discharging – although the rear deflector plate and mulch kit need to be bought separately.
It costs £1199, £150 off the recommended price and has a two year warranty. We deliver it for free within two to three working days.
Now a reliable little ride-on which has been a best seller for many years.
The Mountfield 827H Compact Lawn Rider is suitable for lawns around 3000m2 and has a 66cm cutting width.
This one has Mountfield’s own 196cc engine – easily started – and drives much like an automatic car.
Cutting heights are from 25mm to 80mm with six settings and there is a 150 litre grass box. As an optional extra you can buy a mulch kit – so the clippings are chopped down finely and left to fall back to the lawn.
And you can also buy a trailer hitch – you’ll be surprised at the number of attachments you can you with ride-ons and garden tractors.
It costs £1399, £100 off the maker’s list price and has a two year warranty. We deliver it free within three to five working days.
This new version of a popular machine, the Lawnflite 603 XT-S Lawn Tractor, has a more powerful engine, the 420cc MTD ThorX and also has a larger fuel tank.
It also has a very efficient method of collecting wet grass clippings, handy for a typical British summer.
You can collect the clippings but also discharge them at the back, useful for when cutting orchards and paddocks and the like.
Cutting heights are from 30mm to 95mm and large tyres wont scuff the turf when turning.
Headlights can keep you working when it gets murky.
It costs £1399, £300 off the recommended price, has a two year warranty and is delivered free within two to three working days.
From the same stable, the Lawnflite 380 GT-X Lawn Tractor has a Briggs & Stratton 344cc engine with a large fuel tank and hydrostatic transmission.
That combined with a tight turning circle means it is easy to steer around garden furniture and trees.
This one is a side-discharge model make for cutting larger areas of longer grass where the clippings are discharged to the right hand side rather than collected, although you can buy a grass box and mulch kite as optional extras.
Cutting heights are from 30mm to 9ymm and again there are headlights.
It costs £1499, £300 off the recommended price and it is delivered free within two to three working days with a two year warranty.
This one was a best-seller last year and is great lawn tractor with twin non-overlapping cutting blades to give a better finish.
The Mountfield 1530H Lawn Tractor has an 84cm cutting width, Mountfield’s own 452cc engine and hydrostatic drive, making it easy to handle. It also has a six litre fuel tank to keep you mowing longer.
The twin blades give a powerful airflow under the cutting deck making it a good collector of wet grass.
There are six cutting heights from 25mm to 80mm and the padded seat is adjustable.
With a cutting width of 90cm this is a garden tractor made for larger lawns and it also has heavy tread tyres for better grip.
You can also clean the cutter deck very easily- just attach a garden hose and run the engine briefly.
For longer grassy areas a deflector kit is available as an extra as are tow bar and mulching attachments.
It costs £1799, £200 off the recommended price, has a five year warranty and free delivery within three to five working days.
Now one exclusive to us at MowDirect.
Side discharge: Lawnflite 420 GT lawn tractor
The Lawnflite 420 GT-XII Lawn Tractor offers great value for money with its 656cc Briggs & Stratton engine, a V-twin model giving great torque and power.
Hydrostatic transmission makes it easy to drive and navigate around the garden especially as it has a turning radius of just 46cm.
With this one you can collect the clippings, mulch them or discharge them to the side and anti-scalp wheels will stop you scalping the lawn when you turn and helps you handle rougher terrain.
This one can handle areas up to 10,000m2 and comes with a fitted towing hitch.
It costs £1999, £400 off the recommended price and is delivered free within two to three working days with a two year warranty.
Next, a German-engineered lawn tractor with a great free offer.
The Al-Ko T16-92HD Special Edition Lawn Tractor has a twin-cylinder Briggs & Stratton engine and is recommended for lawns up to 8000m2.
It is fitted with a Hi-Lift blade to produce a powerful air stream under the cutting deck making it a great collector of wet grass – it has a 220-litre grass box which can be emptied from the driver’s seat.
There are six cutting heights and hydrostatic transmission makes it easy and accurate to drive.
The 92cm cutting deck has a wash port to make it easy to clean and minimise corrosion.
For a limited period this tractor comes with a free garden trailer worth £169 and a free tow hitch. You can buy a mulch kit and deflector plat as optional extras.
It costs £2099, £500 off the recommended price, is delivered within two to three working days and has a two year warranty.
Now a great machine from an American manufacturer.
The Snapper ERXT2242RDF Garden Tractor has a twin-cylinder Briggs & Stratton engine and a 107cm cutting width so you can cut larger areas in little time.
It has a tight 36cm turning circle and cutting heights from 38mm to 89mm and the cutting deck has anti-scalp wheels to follow the contours if the lawn closely without scalping it.
The LED headlights will last 100,000 hours before they need replacing.
It costs £2799, a full £1000 off the recommended price and is delivered free within three to five working days. Plus there is a two year maker’s warranty.
Now another on exclusive special offer.
The Murray EMT2642RDF Garden Tractor is a high-spec machine with a 724cxc Briggs & Stratton twin-cylinder engine designed for a long working life.
It has a 350-litre grass box which can be emptied from the driver’s seat and has an alarm which sounds to warn you that it’s full.
Cutting heights are from 38mm to 89 mm with seven settings and hydrostatic drive makes it easy to control and it is fitted with wheels on the cutting deck to prevent scalping the lawn.
It costs £2999, £1000 off the recommended price and is delivered free within two to three working days with a two year warranty.
This one from a leading Italian manufacturer is designed with really large lawns in mind – up to five acres.
The Oleo-Mac OM125-23KH Garden Tractor with Electronic Grassbag Emptying has a 125cm – 50 in- cutting width and a 724cc Briggs & Stratton engine.
The 310 litre grass box can be emptied from the driver’s seat just by pushing a button.
Clippings are either collected, mulched or discharged at the back making it a machine that can tackle the whole garden and it has twin cutting blades to assist collection when it’s wet and give a neater finish.
It costs £3799, £1200 off the recommended price and is delivered free within three to five working days.
It also has a free mulch kit.
Normally we review for you ten top machines but as a bonus here’s an extra one we thought too good to leave out.
The Bolens B36 Lawn Tractor has a 92cm cutting width, a 240-litre grass box and can handle lawns up to 8000m2.
The engine is from Briggs & Stratton, 344cc, smooth running and with twin blades it delivers both a smooth finish to the lawn and is great at collecting wet grass. There are five cutting heights from 30mm to 95mm
It also has a pivoting front axle and twin headlights and you can buy as mulch plug and rear grass deflector as optional extras.
It costs £1599, £200 off the recommended price and is delivered free within two to three working days with a two year warranty.
Keep an eye on our site as there are some great new products coming for Spring.
We know that buying a ride-on or garden tractor is a big investment so if you’d like to call us before placing your order we’re on 020 3026 8712. There you’ll find a team of lads and lasses with years of knowledge in garden machinery.
