The riding lawn mower is the obvious choice for someone who has more than half an acre of lawn to mow.
These machines are quite expensive to buy but very efficient at their task; moreover, once bought they require very little maintenance and operating costs are minimal.
Riding mowers have deck widths ranging from 38 to 54 inches and the broader the mowing deck width the more expensive the machine.
These machines come with a variety of features pre-installed and you can also buy optional equipment if you need additional features.
Most of these machines come with a very handy feature: they mulch grass as it is cut, distributing it onto the lawn.
You can get optional attachments like snow blowers and plows, which will be very handy come winter.
The obvious benefit of the riding lawn mower is that it is a lot more efficient than the hand pushed mowers.
They come with canopies, which are quite useful protection from the summer heat.
This is a very convenient way to mow the lawn and people are more inclined to get on with the job than if they have to walk behind a lawn mower pushing it along.
The down side to the riding lawn mower is the cost; it is very expensive when compared to the hand push models with prices ranging upwards of a thousand dollars.
For some people the hand pushed model is more welcome because it provides a very good form of exercise.
Another problem with the riding mower is that if you have extensive landscaping on your lawn you are going to need a hand pushed mower to get around obstacles because this is something the riding mower cannot do.
A word of caution if you plan to buy a riding mower; ride it with caution and make sure children do not play around with it.
The accident statistics with this type of mower in America alone each year are frightening.
This mower tends to tip over on uneven ground so proceed with care.