Lawn Mowing Basics: 7 Tips

Mowing the lawn sounds like the easiest thing in the world. You can either hire the local kid or do it yourself, but before you mow take some time to consider a few things. There is a correct way and an incorrect way to mow your lawn. If you follow a few simple rules your lawn will be healthier and much more attractive.

A few years ago I had a lawn that I couldn't keep healthy throughout the summer. No matter how much I watered, fertilized and obsessed, I couldn't keep the thing green. I was frustrated and thought I simply had some bad soil or bad grass. I had all but decided to tear the whole thing up and start over.

I was just about to rent a backhoe when my brother dropped by. He's always had a green lush lawn and never seemed to do much maintenance. He took one look at my lawn and told me what the problem was: I was cutting the grass too short.

I thought such a simple solution couldn't be correct but I entertained the idea and held off the re-plant. I let the grass grow for a week and a half, then raised my lawn mower up by about 2 inches. I cut it and surveyed the work. It looked way too long to me, but I vowed not to go lower.

A couple days later the grass was noticeably healthier looking. I cut it again to the same length. By the following week the grass had become thicker and greener. I was ecstatic and called my brother to thank him.

He gave me 7 basic lawn mowing tips:

1.
Cut the grass only by a third of its height. For instance if the grass is 5 inches tall take just a little more than an inch off. It doesn't need to be exact just don't cut it by half. The ideal range for lawn height is between 3 and 4.5 inches. It sounds long, but this will give the grass deeper roots and will keep it healthier. It'll also retain moisture better which will cut down on how often you need to water.

2.
Be sure your lawn mower's blades are sharp. You want the blades to cut cleanly through the grass. If it tears the grass in jagged chunks the grass blades will turn brown which can affect how green your lawn looks. My brother recommended getting the blades sharpened at the end of each summer. If you wait until spring, you'll be amongst the other procrastinators and have a long wait for service.

3.
Mow the lawn when it's dry but not scorching hot. The best time of day to achieve this is in the evening. Make sure the grass is somewhat dry; cutting wet grass will be harder for even sharp mower blades to cut smoothly. Wet grass also tends to clump causing the mower blades to work harder. If you mow during the hottest time of the day you risk exposing your lawn to excessive heat, which can do serious damage.

4.
Don't bag the grass clippings every time you mow. Instead take off the bag and allow the cut blades to stay on the grass. It will act like mulch putting important nutrients back into the lawn. It won't look neat and tidy, but it'll help your lawn in the long run. You should do this mulching about every third time you mow.

5.
Don't use the same pattern when you cut your lawn. Alternate your cutting pattern. If you cut the grass north south last time cut east west next time. This will assure that you don't get wheel ruts ingrained in the lawn.

6.
Don't over fertilize your lawn. In fact unless you have invasive weeds taking over, you shouldn't have to use chemicals at all. Using fertilizer too much can make your grass' root systems too shallow, creating fickle, hard to maintain grass. If you mulch and cut properly your grass shouldn't need fertilizer.

7.
Water the lawn in the morning not in the evening. By watering in the evening, you allow the grass to be moist for a long period of time. This can cause saturation and become a breeding ground for rot. Don't water mid-day for the simple reason that it's a waste of water; too much evaporation.

By following these simple steps you can have a great looking lawn without spending a lot of time and money. Obsessing about your lawn will be a thing of the past and your lawn will be the envy of the neighborhood.