Stop using your calendar! With the varying winters we have here in the North Shore your ideal time to start spring lawn care can vary widely from season to season. The best way to know when to start lawn mowing is to take a serious look at your turf.
If you gave your lawn a nice close cut in the fall, you should wait until your grass starts to grow out to a height of at least three inches. Waiting until then gives the grass a chance to put down some nice new root growth.
Grass that is allowed to grow taller also puts down deeper roots which means your grass is better able to stand up to the drought and heat stress that will be here soon.
Don't Mow A Wet Lawn
Early spring usually means rain so if your lawn squishes when you walk on it, it’s probably too wet to mow. The turning wheels of the mower and even your feet can cause damage to the crowns of the grass. Heavy traffic on saturated soils can lead to rutting whether you’re using a riding mower or a push mower. If you leave a rut in the lawn that dries out and is left during the summer, grass blades on the tall side of the rut can be scalped and damaged possibly to the point of dying.
Spring Lawn Mowing Tips
You should never remove more than one-third of the total height of the grass in any single cutting. Spring fertilizing and heavy spring rains can cause lots of heavy growth so just be sure to keep the one-third rule in mind. It may take several small mows to get a flushing spring lawn to the desired growing season height of three inches. Be sure to wait at least 3 days between those mows to allow the plants to recover from the stress.
Don’t mow in the same direction every time. Repeated mows in the same direction can stimulate horizontal instead of vertical growth. It is recommended to mow at right angles to the direction of the previous mowing.
Prepare Your Equipment Ready
If you are anxious to get mowing but the weather isn’t cooperating, take the time to make sure your lawnmower is tuned up and ready for the season. Change the spark plug as well as the oil if it has it. Change the fuel filter and spark plug in your line trimmer as well.
Make sure your mower has a sharp blade! Grass cut with a dull blade will have tattered ends that are ideal places for fungal diseases to enter the grass plant. The tattered ends of the grass plants can give the lawn an overall brownish cast if the blade is exceptionally dull. Revisit this during the season as well. Again, a close look at your grass will tell you when the blade needs to be sharpened.
And it is beneficial to leave your grass clippings on the lawn as they decay and turn into organic nutrients for the grass roots to absorb. Clippings can over time thicken up the thatch layer so aerating your lawn once a season to break up that thatch is usually recommended.
If you have a lawn mowing service, they should know all the do’s and don’ts on your lawn and should be able to work around other lawn care service schedules like fertilizing and weed control. If not, it may be time to find someone new!
Get More Info From The Pros!
Looking for more information on fertilizing and weed control or just ready to let the professionals take over your lawn care needs? The Grassmaster Plus team is ready and willing to answer any questions you have and can provide you a free quote on your lawn care services for the season. Contact our local office today!