Lawn Mowing

One of the secrets of a green and healthy lawn is regular mowing. If you leave the grass to become too long it can result in loose, weak growth and after cutting will often leave an unsightly yellow looking lawn. A good rule of thumb is to not remove more than a third of the overall height of the grass in one cut. During the spring and autumn mowing should take place once a week while the growth rate picks up. Over the summer months this should ideally be increased to twice a week apart from during any particularly dry spells. Never allow more than 2 weeks to pass in between mows as this allows some weed grasses to seed and spread profusely.

The mowing season usually begins around March time, make sure for your first cut that your mower is set to its highest cut level and gradually work your way down to the height you require over subsequent cuts. This method is also the best practice for newly installed lawns. As a rough guide final cutting heights of a standard ornamental lawn is around 13-25mm though it will more likely be around 40mm in the spring and autumn. If your lawn is very bumpy or uneven you will need to watch your cutting height in order to avoid scalping the lawn and leaving bare patches. Cutting too closely causes the grass to use all its energy in replacing the cut leaves at the expense of maintaining good colour and fighting disease. This in turn can weaken the grass by encouraging shallow rooting which reduces resilience to drought and weeds. Remember to keep your mower well maintained with sharp cutting blades to minimise damage to the grass.