During the warm months when my grass is growing, is there a mowing schedule I can use to encourage the lawn to be green and healthy? Mine often seems "unhappy" when it's been cut (goes pale, some browning), which makes me want to mow it less-often.
Is there anything I can check to know when it's best to cut the grass?
It doesn't matter so much how often you mow, as much as how long the grass is.
If your lawn looks yellow and dried out after you've mowed it, you probably have the blade on your mower set too low. Some people like a super-short lawn like a putting green, but doing this requires both a specific variety of grass and lots of extra care spent on fertilizing and other upkeep. Since you're probably not one of those people, your grass will be healthiest if you let it grow a little longer.
The first time I mow my lawn in the spring, I mow it on the longest setting. Subsequently I'll mow about every 1-2 weeks, depending on how much rain we've gotten (I don't ever water the lawn--we get plenty of rain where I live), moving the blade a little lower until it's on about the middle setting. Recently I've noticed that my lawn is looking a little yellow in patches, so I'm going to let it grow a little longer, then move the blade back up. If your lawn is in a similar state, you'd probably benefit from doing the same.
Conveniently, somewhat longer grass is also more comfortable to walk on barefoot.
There are several things that suggest the answer to your question is "the more often the better" and that your reaction to mowing less frequently because of the yellowing you see after is the opposite of what you want for a green lawn.
First of all, we all know that for a lawn to be green it must be growing. Grass pales and turns yellow over time unless it is growing.
Second, the key factor to keeping a growing lawn healthy is mowing it according to its growth.
Therefore, if you get it growing quickly (fertilizer, lots of rain, etc.) then you simply need to be mowing more often.
The faster the growth, the more mowing is needed, but the greener the lawn.
As MichaelF pointed out in the comments, most advice for a healthy lawn says to follow the one-third rule:
If your grass is growing, you’ll be mowing. Each grass type looks best and stays healthiest at a certain height. Use your mower to maintain that height as closely as possible. Cutting your lawn too short can be just as damaging as letting it grow too tall. The basic rule of mowing is to never cut more than one-third of the leaf blade. Generally, this means mowing about once a week.
(Source: http://www.gardenideas.com/lawns/lawn_perfect.html)
In other words, it's true that mowing can be unhealthy for the lawn, especially if the lawn was cut too short within too short of a time period. In other words, you want to be consistent about mowing, and if you get it too long, you should only cut off 1/3 the next mowing and then gradually reduce the height (as JSBangs posted).
Another factor in this equation is the optimal height for your type of lawn. Mowing for Dummies has a good table for this (and also echoes the one-third rule).
So, when you decide to mow less frequently because of the yellowing you see, you are actually perpetuating the problem. Grass is greenest at the top of the blade and when you let that grow longer than it should, you cut off the healthiest part. In other words, it's not the act of mowing that hurts it, it's cutting too much of the blades. Mowing the next day shouldn't hurt at all -- as long as the blade is sharp!
There are a few other reasons that mowing as often as possible is the healthiest for your lawn:
JSBangs is right on about not over-cutting. Some other important considerations are
I found a few university studies that showed the healthiest height for most types of grass is about 3 inches. Depending on where you live, though, this may not be practical. Some towns and HOAs have a grass height restriction that is somewhat lower.
The other thing I've found from multiple sources is that you don't want to remove more that 1/3 of the height of your grass in a single cutting. If you chop off too much at once, it stresses the grass. (This may be your problem.)
If your lawn is really tall, and you need to get it down to the desired height, you may need to do multiple mowings, removing 1/3 of the grass each time. (Wait a few days between each mowing.)
So, if you are targeting a 3 inch grass height, you should mow whenever your lawn reaches 4.5 inches. As to how often you should mow to achieve that, it will depend on how fast your lawn grows.
One other thing to consider: If you have a huge riding mower, the tires will also be rough on the lawn. So, if you have to mow very often (once a week or more), you may end up harming the lawn. In that case, you may need to deviate from the above guidelines a bit.
It really depends on a number of factors, such as:
Grass type eg Warm-season lawn or Cool-season lawn.
Growing conditions ie Are the conditions favourable to a healthy growing lawn:
Below are a couple of quotes from this answer I posted here on SE. Hopefully you find them of some benefit:
- Mow high and when doing so only remove approximately ⅓ of the grass blade height. In my case, 3inch (75mm) is my final cut height, that is as high as my current lawnmower will cut. My next lawnmower will be able to cut to at least 4inch (100mm).
- Seeing as my lawnmower is a mulching mowing, I leave all the grass clippings on the lawn (free, natural fertilizer), except with first cut and last cut of the season. I collect up those cuttings and dispose of them via a community yard waste pile.
You may also find the actual answer I pointed to above of some help:
What's an organic way to discourage crabgrass from a large “lawn”?
I mow lawns for business and you should never cut more than 1/3 of the grass plant off (or you could damage the stem) and should mow at a height of 3 to 3-1/2 inches to keep the lawn healthy and green. Also, remember that it isn't really how tall the grass is that matters, unless it is more than 4 inches, it is the even cut.
I live in the UK, so it may not be the same in the USA, however there is a very simple guideline that works well.
Never cut of more than 1/3 of the grass when you mow the lawn.
So if you wish to have short grass then you need to mow more often. Likewise if you over feed your grass so it grows very fast you need to mow more often.
In the UK, a golf green needs to be mowed most days, as it is kept very short, but a normal back garden lawn can be kept neat and tidy without undue stress to the grass just by mowing it most weeks.
(Grow regulators (eg Primo Maxx) can allow short grass without having to mow every day.)
I read recently that the commonly-accepted advice to remove no more that 1/3 of the grass height in a single mowing is actually based on grazing pasture research in the 1950's. Modern lawn and turf grass mixes are different from pasture grass mixes, and grasses react differently uniform mowing as compared to grazing. I keep my lawn long, and routinely remove up to 1/2 half the grass length without damage.
If your lawn is stressed after mowing, you may need to sharpen your blade. Or you're cutting it too short. A lot factors into how often you need to mow. It should grow enough so that when you mow, you cut ⅓ of its length, leaving 3½ inches. Regardless, I cut my grass every 2 weeks on my mower's highest setting.
As other's have stated, try not to mow off more than 1/3rd of the length of the blade.
Most cool season grasses like to be mowed high. 2-3" is a good mowing height. The blade is where it makes it's food (photosynthesis) so if you cut too much off it goes "hungry".
A lot of times when people complain about the lawn looking bad after cutting it's because they're cutting it too short and letting it get too long before cutting. The top of the grass that gets ample sunlight is a darker green than the base of the plant. If you let it get too high you're then exposing the parts that didn't get much sun. Someone in my neighborhood lets their grass grow long between cutting it. It always looks dark and healthy before being cut. After cutting it the color is lighter and has yellow patches.
Don't mow when temps are greater than 90 degrees and sunny. Or when the grass is wet. While the blade is damaged from being cut it loses more moisture and makes it more susceptible to disease. Making sure your mower blade is sharp helps produce a cleaner cut that heals faster. A reel mower, like you have, produces the cleanest cuts. I always swap my blades when the weather gets hot.
Waling on moist soil tends to compress it which causes other problems for the lawn so try not to walk on it when the soil is wet.
In the spring and fall your grass will grow faster (cool season grasses at least) than it does in the summer so you'll need to mow more frequently unless you water regularly.
It takes some thought to do it correctly. You have to monitor the weather. For example, if the grass doesn't really need to be cut right now but it's going to rain for the next 5 days you should cut it now rather than letting it get too long before you can cut it.
I agree with 3 - 3.35 inches, but that varies depending on whether, and weather, I can mow every week. If rain interrupts the mowing and the lawn gets longer than normal, then I mow it longer to maintain the 1/3 rule; then I mow it again a few days later to bring it back to 3" or so. I say "or so" because my wife likes it shorter. I don't argue with her; I just cut it as close to 3" as possible; although I would rather it be longer, even to 4", to shade the roots and because it also needs less water then and browns less. The only time I mow it shorter, to 2.5" is on the last mow of the year; which in NE is sometimes into early December.
Well simply amazing. Here are the facts for cool season grass mixes. KEEP at 3" period. The reason is that these grass species need the topgrowth to feed (plants produce their own FOOD via photosynthesis) adequately the genetically large root systems. Any shorter and no amount of fertilizer, water will make your grass healthy. You are on borrowed time. Green does NOT mean healthy.
One can mow as often as 2 or 3 times per week, as long as the blades are sharp, doesn't matter about the tires/weight. If one does not mow at least 1 time per week, the grass gets too long, to cut it more than 1/3 will stress your grass, whether or not you are able to detect stress. Stress is accumulative.
Never, ever mow your lawn with a weed wacker, unless you've been very, very bad. This is a big stress for a manicured lawn. Kind of like you get 2 or 3 or 4 'stresses' before you will notice, but then the weeds will already be moving in.
Do not use fast-release fertilizer. This is another huge stress! Use instead a slow-release or slow-release organic fertilizer that has bacteria and mycorrhizae included. Takes a bit more to see greening but WOW!! I use Dr. Earth organic lawn fertilizer and until I find a similar brand elsewhere, this is what I will use...and I have done over a decade of maintaining other people's lawns for a living...this incredible fertilizer although slow lasts twice as long. It is more expensive that the fast stuff but you need half as much!!
Do not 'mulch'...I have not found a single mower that can actually 'mulch' grass where it doesn't build up faster than it decomposes. (Dr. Earth lawn fertilizer has bacteria that are responsible to decompose this material...). Use the clippings for weed control on plant beds if spread thinly or use in your compost pile as a 'green'...
Always, always make sure your blades are super sharp. Purchase extra blades so that you can change blades out when necessary. Look at the tips of your grass. If they are at all FRAYED and browning, change the blades! Have them professionally sharpened if you do not understand how to sharpen blades.
Aerate ONCE PER YEAR!! This means renting or hiring an aerator that pulls PLUGS of lawn and soil out of your lawn and LEAVE to dry and disintegrate on top of your lawn!! Do not waste this 'gold' by raking it up to discard...arrrhhhgggghhh.
Train your lawn (especially these big rooted cool-season grass mixes) to be drought tolerant. If you have an established lawn with automatic watering that you have programmed for EVERY day or even every other day...you need to pay attention!! To do this correctly, you water for a good half hour or an entire hour. Meantime, you take a spade and make a big dig. You should see wet soil at least 4" below the surface. Then no watering AT ALL until you see your footprints on the lawn stay down. This is a perfect time to water, and once again water deeply...at least 4" deep. Once your lawn has been trained to have deep roots, you will only need to water once per week. Period. Watering every day shallowly ensures your lawn will definitely go dormant if you miss a few waterings! Allowing your lawn to go dormant IS NOT GOOD FOR YOUR LAWN!! Once is OK. MAYBE twice. More than that you WILL have lots of weeds and a very wimpy bunch of grasses!! No amount of fertilizer or water will make your lawn healthy again.
Overseeding won't be necessary. Definitely no moss control!! (shoot, this entails sulfur to kill mosses which in no way harm your grasses, moss is an opportunist and will grow wherever there is bare soil, enough moisture and shade...your grasses want more alkaline, sulfur brings the pH down way too much so you'll have to lime). You should do a soil test at least twice. Once to see what you've got going on and the second time after you've added chemicals.
Thatching is only necessary if one hasn't been maintaining their grasses correctly. If you've been mowing short, not been aerating, watering shallowly use fast release non-organic fertilizer once a season...this will probably be necessary and soon. Not pretty, in fact I feel that at this point it would be easier to use a sod cutter and remove the entire lawn to begin again.
Redesign your lawn so that none of it is in the shade. Growing a lawn in the shade is simply STUPID. What a headache!! So much easier to use a finely crushed and compacted gravel as a surface than mess with 'shade TOLERANT grasses'!!
Put some energy into a designed and clean 'edge' for your lawn. The eye sees the edge, as long as the bulk of the lawn is mowed and greenish, it is the edging that makes or breaks a lawn. No concrete, plastic or pavers between plant beds and lawn!!! Looks awful and far more expensive to do than simply keeping a trench between plant beds and lawn.
For a beautiful lawn, you really don't need a maintenance crew!! You need a dang good hydrostatic lawn mower that raises enough to cut to 3". Again, purchase at least 2 extra blades for your residential mower and continue to take dull blades back into the professional sharpeners (unless you understand how to sharpen blades). Rent the aerator once per year. You should definitely have a great 'weed wacker'. Gas powered, not electric! I'd get a straight, not curved and probably Stihl. I hate the 'pound' as you go heads, get a simple (straight) head that you only have to cut off a strand and weave it into the head, make sure the lines aren't too long...as opposed to the pound and weird winding head!! Watch what you are doing and understand (hey, I had to do this professionally and almost went into competition) that shield does little, I always had it removed. But one little bitty rock could easily bust windows (always MY truck's windows sigh), client's expensive windows or worse someone's eye!) at a distance of 100 yards!!
The other piece of equipment you HAVE to have is a gas-powered BLOWER! Again, Stihl. I couldn't LIVE without my blower (or weed wacker)!!! I am very against petroleum but as long as we have to battle, maintain non-organic landscapes I will NEVER EVER OPT FOR ELECTRICAL. No comparison!! If you've got any iron in your fertilizer you HAVE to get it off any concrete. To remove these iron stains involves acid and gee...what a mess of chemicals. Just blow everything off after mowing...
These are the absolute basics to have a HEALTHY, beautiful lawn. These other opinions are voodoo. My opinion, grin!! Hey, good luck!
