Milwaukee's Diamond Cutter

You know how there's a guy in every neighborhood (maybe it's you) who's a little obsessed with having the perfect lawn? Well, in Milwaukee, that guy is David Mellor. But Mellor can be forgiven, because his lawn is a little special. CBS News Saturday Morning Co-Anchor Russ Mitchell reports.

Mellor is a diamond cutter. That is, he's the assistant

David Mellor

Like that obsessed neighbor, Mellor's a perfectionist, fine-tuning his crew's technique or fretting about an approaching weather front.

But, hey, nobody said it was easy being green.

But beyond being green, Mellor is at the "cutting edge" of a recent big league trend. He was one of the first groundskeepers to carve one of those elaborate checkerboard patterns right into the stadium grass.

"Well, we try to give a little extra, I guess...a little sparkle to the diamond," he said.

Now, groundskeepers everywhere from Dodger Stadium to the House that Ruth Built have adopted the Mellor method.

This all really got started in 1993 when a beetle invaded Mellor's outfield grass.

Mellor said, "We had had a Paul McCartney concert here and I believe it rained like five out of six days, set up and take down, so the front of the stage really got beat up and muddy...and to draw people's attention away from that, (we) did a very elaborate pattern on the infield."

The variety can be dizzying. But the fans love it.

"It's one of the first things I look at every series, you know, to see if they changed it again," said one fan.

"It shows the pride...It's like you said, a work of art, said another fan.

In fact, some of Mellor's work is actually hanging on museum walls. Several designs are part of an international traveling exhibit on the Great American Lawn.

And don't look now, but mowing patterns are sprouting up on lawns all ovr town. "Homeowners really love this," landscaper Heather Schuster said.

Schuster's Milwaukee landscaping business now caters to fans looking to create their own fields of dreams, especially homeowners with a competitive streak.

"Absolutely..keeping up with the Joneses...you bet," she said.

After cutting the grass in alternating rows, the landscapers will go over the lawn with a heavy roller. Bending the grass gives it the striped effect, just like at the ballpark. The reason the stadium version looks so great is that they use big-league equipment, with rollers that bend the grass attached to mowers that cut it.

For one game, Mellor tried to "bend in" a V for "victory" in the outfield. He admits it didn't come out very well. Neither did the game, as the Brewers lost 6-2.

But, as in baseball, tomorrow is another game, and another chance for Mellor to create a new piece of art on his giant green canvas.

Mellor says with a little time and patience, homeowners can create their own mowing patterns.

He says many garden centers can even attach rollers to your home mowers. Click above to get Mellor's detailed tips on creating mowing patterns. Or, he says he'll be happy to answer questions to him at his email address, dmellor@execpc.com.

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