Lawn Care and Mowing: How To Do It Right
Friday, November 30th, 2007 Subscribe To Our Feed
Some folks may wonder at the title of this post: is mowing really that hard? Well, mowing of itself really isn’t hard. After all, we often send our older kids out with the lawn mower as part of their chores. Doing it right and proper however, for your type of grass, takes a little more than brawn. Lawn care and mowing is really easy if you plan ahead and follow these simple steps.
First you must know what type of grass you have. Bluegrass, Bermuda, Fescue, Zoysia, Centipede and St. Augustine all have preferred mowing heights. Here’s a chart to make it easy:
Proper Grass Mowing Heights (in inches)
Tall Fescue 2 - 3
Fine Fescue 2 - 2.5
Ky Bluegrass 2 - 2.5
Perennial Ryegrass 2 - 2.5
Common Bermuda 1 - 2
Hybrid Bermuda 0.5 - 1.5
Zoysia 0.5 - 1.5
Centipede 1 - 1.5
St. Augustine 2 - 3
The general rule in lawn care and mowing is that when mowing any type of grass, mow when the grass is dry and only remove one-third of its height at any time to encourage its health. If you’ve recently watered your lawn, wait at least twelve hours before mowing. Try to mow after early morning dew has dried. Mowing a wet lawn helps spread nasty lawn fungi. Your mower will run much better and be less likely to clog as well.
Correct mowing height is very important because the grass blade uses that length to soak up the sunshine it requires, crowd out weeds and store needed moisture.
Using the lawn care and mowing chart as a guide, allow the selected grass type to grow no more than 1 1/2 times the preferred height; so when you cut, you’ll only remove 1/3 the grass’ height at a time. For example, let’s say I want to maintain my common bermuda lawn at a 2″ height. This means I will not let it grow more than 3″ long before mowing.
If you cut off more than 1/3 of the grass’ height at a time, it traumatizes the lawn leaving it weak and more vulnerable to disease and insect pests. Remember, grass like other green plants uses its surface length to take in required sunshine for growth. Good lawn care and mowing practices respect this need. If for some reason you’ve let your grass grow longer, say 4″- 6″, you must still cut only 1/3 the length, wait a few days, then trim the remaining length at a second session to bring it down to 2″- 3″.
For cool season grasses that dislike summer’s heat, seriously consider mowing at the higher height limits. A higher mowing lets the grass retain its strength and retain moisture better. Scalping your lawn leaves it vulnerable to drought, diseases and pests. I’ve discovered even a warm season grass like Bermuda likes better to be mowed at the 2″ height in summer. It looks far healthier and better withstands the lack of rain we’ve had here locally.
Lawn Care and Mowing: Vary the Direction of the Mower For Best Results
When you mow, alternate mowing the lawn vertically and then horizontally. This keeps the lawn from becoming rutted and the grass from flattening in front of the mower blade when it’s constantly mowed in one direction. For a really neat look, mow diagonally. I did this as a variation and my yard looked sharp! Really turned the neighbors’ heads.
Ensure your mower blade is sharp, so it cuts easily, instead of hacking and ripping, and damaging the grass. The sharpness of the blade is way more important than the variety of mower you use. A dull blade creates an ugly dead brown line across the top of your grass. A raggedy blade make your grass more vulnerable to disease and pests. You should sharpen your mower’s blades at least once each year. If there are any stones, small branches or other hard debris on the lawn, remove them before running the mower. This will help maintain your mower blade and minimize injury to you from any flying debris kicked up by mowing.
After a correctly done lawn care and mowing session, leave the cut grass on the lawn - don’t rake it up. The cut grass will naturally decompose and provide nutrients to the lawn. Cut grass is one of the best fertilizers your lawn could have. It’s the right price - free! - and it can provide up to 33% of your yard’s yearly fertilizer needs. I use an electric mulching mower which pulverizes the clippings even finer so they are absorbed faster.
Mowing provides great exercise, can relieve stress, gets you outdoors to breathe fresh air; and keeps your lawn looking fresh. Lawn care and mowing can be good for your yard and you!
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