dump these big habit from your sustainment routine now .
cut down the lawn is one of the most common — and frequently done — landscaping chores . Even if you ’re more of a men - off gardener , chances are you still have to rev up up your lawn mower regularly .
Properly caring for your lawn ask a fleck more than just pulling yourlawn mowerout once a calendar week and running it across your yard . There are a few vulgar mistakes to avoid to have the sound grass and a beautiful lawn each time you mow .
Credit: Karla Conrad
1. You Mow Your Grass Too Short
It may seem like mow the lawn curt would intend you’re able to get aside with this task less frequently , but this can do more harm than dear . Each blade of pot is part of a plant that gets its nutrients partially from photosynthesis . mop the K too depleted reduces the amount of foliage surface available to surcharge up the beam , so you may end up with apatchy lawn , damaging or even kill your grass . Short grass also makes iteasier for locoweed to move inand take over .
Instead of mow the lawn super short , keep your lawn mower brand high up and mop ofttimes . As a linguistic rule of thumb , you should never move out more than one - third of a blade of grass in a individual mowing . If your weed has gotten tall , cut down as gamey as you’re able to , then a few Day afterwards , mow the yard again a small mo lower rather than waitress another week . eatage clippings should always be less than 1 in long .
How brusk you mow your lawn also depends on the season . grand can be cut a little lower in the spring and pass when the conditions is cooler . In summertime , keeping the height taller let the blade to shade their root and provides an extra leafage surface to fire them .
Credit: Marty Baldwin
expert have raise their recommendations in recent age for mowing stature between 2 and 3.5 inches , calculate on the type of green goddess . coolheaded - time of year grasses — Kentucky bluegrass , tall fescue , and perennial ryegrass — can generally be cut to 2.5 to 3.5 column inch . Warm - time of year pasture that grow horizontally — such as zoysia and Bermuda — can be mop down to 2 to 2.5 inches .
2. You Collect Your Lawn Clippings
Removing grass clippings while mowing the lawn with a bagging lawn mower is tempting , but doing so will rob your lawn of worthful nutrient . Here ’s why : Grass blade are primarily composed of water ( about 85 % ) and also include nitrogen , so they snap off down quickly and add nutrients to the soil , leave you to practice less plant food . If you already have a bagging lawn mower orleaf vacuum , you do n’t need to grease one’s palms a Modern one — you could absent the affixation on most models .
Another common misconception is that grass trimming cause thatch , a layer of part decomposed grass origin and stems that can build up between the soil surface and the growing grass . However , if your clippings stay under 1 in in distance , they wo n’t make this problem . ( though if your lawn already has Edward Thatch that ’s more than ½ inch thick , grass trim can conduce to the problem ) . Ifthatch is an issuefor your attribute , you’re able to rely on ability rake , verticutting , or coreaeration in the spring or lessen to open up more space for the roots .
To forbid grass clip from make a mess , keep them aside from operose surfaces such as streets anddriveways . when you ’re pout the lawn . If they ’re sit onconcreteor another hard surface , they can be swept into storm drain and choke off them or affect piss quality down the line . Grass clippings contain phosphorus , a nutrient that turns lakes green with algae , and chemically treated disintegrate snip can also pose a threat to fish and other wildlife .
Credit: Chip Nadeau
3. You Don’t Switch Directions Each Time You’re Mowing the Lawn
If you ’re always mow the lawn in the same focusing , finally , your sens will start twist that way . Changing the blueprint each clock time you mow will eliminate this offspring and decrease soil compaction . flip counselling , either at right angle or diagonals , can also aid controlcreeping grass runnersand reduce Edward Teach development .
4. You Mow Wet Grass
Here ’s a golden rule of lawn guardianship : Never pout your grass when blind drunk . For starters , it ’s a batch messier than mop the lawn when it ’s teetotal — nobody require crocked dope newspaper clipping sticking to everything and clogging your lawn mower ’s blades . Wet soil is softer than teetotal , so your mower may draw out the lawn ’s roots out of the ground , leaving you withpatchy , stagnant area . Dry grass takes less sentence to cut down , cut off easier , wo n’t clog or mat , and looks better when you ’re finished . It ’s also safe to mop on wry eatage because there ’s less risk of slipping ( especially on slopes ) and getting injure by the lawn mower .
5. You Don’t Sharpen Your Lawn Mower’s Blades
If you notice that your lawn mower orlawn edgerisn’t getting the job done as well as it used to , trysharpening the blades . Just like kitchen knives , lawn mower blade can become duller with each utilization , result in grass that get under one’s skin " torn " or else of " skip . " These ragged edge will look bad , and they can also invite diseases or pests in through damaged area , so it ’s deserving taking the time to focus the leaf blade at least twice a twelvemonth . you may do it yourself with just a wrench and a medium file or a focus might putz . Experts recommend change the blade ofrobot lawn mowersat least once per mowing season .
When to Call a Professional
If you ’re not by nature blessed with a dark-green thumb , or only do n’t have the time to decent take care of your lawn , then throw an experienced nurseryman coming to your home on a weekly or biweekly groundwork may be the option for you . However , even if you mow your own lawn , there are certain situations where a professional is want :
When in doubt , give the pros a call so you’re able to keep your lawn in tip - top chassis class - rotund .
