If
you have a fairly large and flat lawn, you can create
some really cool looking outdoor Halloween decorations by trimming
the grass to look like a spooky symbol or figure.
The
larger and thicker your lawn, the larger and more
detailed the Halloween crop circle you can make and more
impressive it will look.
A simple Jack O' Lantern,
skull, vampire bat, tombstone or words such as "Happy
Halloween" or "Beware" look great and are fairly easy to
sculpt.
Needless to say, you must
live in a geographical location where you can grow grass
in the Fall. This usually eliminates cold area's where
the low temperatures restrict growing. Its best to create your
Halloween lawn sculpture no more than a day or two
before Halloween, so that its edges will be well
defined.
Begin by letting your lawn
grow out to several inches in height. This can take a
week or more depending on your particular geographic
location, temperature, type of grass, etc. Now cut it
with the blade of your lawn mower set to its highest
height. This is
usually accomplished by setting the height of the wheels
on most lawn mowers. This will make a smooth and flat
lawn.
Next, its time to start
sculpting the figure into your lawn. Before you begin
trimming, gently pickup or rake
away any leaves, twigs or clumps of grass clippings that
may have accumulated on it.
Visualize
what you want to trim into the grass, then using a
Weed Eater or similar type trimmer, carefully trim your
chosen Halloween symbol or words into
the lawn just like a crop circle. Using a trimmer allows
you to make much more defined and tighter patterns than
if you used a lawn mower, but you must be much more
careful.
Take your time and be sure to hold the trimmer level and
even over the grass at all times while trimming or your
symbol will have uneven depths. For the best look, try
to leave about a half inch of grass above the ground and
not trim all the way down to the dirt.
This lawn art should show up
during daylight hours very well, but will not be visible
during the night unless you light your lawn with flood
lights.
Once Halloween is over, just
let your lawn grown back out and mow to remove the
symbol or words.
Tip - If you are making
more than one word, start with the longest word. This
makes it easier to gauge the right spacing and distance
for the shorter words.
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