As the temperatures start to drop in the fall, your ideal mowing height is mid-length. Cool season grasses should be cut to 3 inches. Increase your mowing height on warm season grasses, leaving them a little long to help protect the plant from winter damage, around 2 ½ – 3 inches.
For a typical residential Midwest lawn, maintain a height of 3 inches or higher. Taller grass shades out weed seeds and keeps soil cooler.
In the summer, keep both cool-season and warm-season grasses slightly taller. Cut cool-season grasses to 3 or 3 ½ inches. Mow warm-season grasses to 2 or 2 ½ inches. In summer, grass can be kept a bit higher to prevent weeds, help shade the soil line, and maintain water in the soil.
Proper Mowing
Mow the lawn as high as possible—as high as you can comfortably tolerate. A longer lawn means more leaf blade, and this provides several benefits. More leaf blade means more photosynthesis, which results in stronger, more prolific root and shoots growth.
Cut your lawn to possibly the shortest height you have all season. The ideal height is around 2 1/2 inches. Cut it too low and the grass might not be long enough to photosynthesize and provide nutrients to the roots. Too high and the frost might become matted after a snowfall.
Generally, the cutoff point comes when temperatures drop below 50°F during the day. Usually, that's late October or early November, but some warm areas may push that date back to the beginning of December.
If the grass is too wet, you shouldn't mow and if it's too dry you shouldn't either. Remember, mowing is a stressful event for your lawn. If you mow when it's already under stress, such as during dry spell or drought, then it will become even more stressed. You don't like to be stressed and neither does your poor lawn.
Generally, yes. Mowing frequently is the key to a healthy lawn because each cut encourages the grass to grow thicker, creating a luscious, dense lawn. You can also block out weeds and make your turf more resilient, which is essential for a long-term, strong lawn.
Mowing every two weeks — instead of weekly — and not dousing grass with chemical herbicides and fertilizers, helps the environment and supports the health of bees, which are among the world's most important pollinators.
What Length Should Grass Be Cut for Optimal Results? Ideally, during warm weather, grass should be kept as high as possible. For most circumstances, the blades should be kept somewhere around 2 to 2.5 inches in length.
For this reason, some people prefer to mow at 3 or 3.5 inches. For the healthiest and most sustainable approach, Michigan State University Extension says 3.5 to 4 inches is most desirable. Lawns mowed at 3.5 or 4 inches out-compete weeds, tolerate grubs and look just as good as lawns mowed at 2.5 inches.
In fact, some cool-season grasses will go dormant during the hot summer months until early fall. During a heat wave—a period of abnormally hot weather that lasts longer than 2 days—it's recommended that you do not mow your lawn.
Lawn clippings usually do not need to be bagged. Recycling lawn clippings can reduce your fertilizer needs and improve your soil. Recycling clippings to the lawn does not contribute to thatch. If you must remove clippings, they can be composted or used as mulch.
The mowing height range for most grasses is between 1.5 and 3 inches. In general, for most lawns 2 to 2.5 inches is optimum because if you are mowing at 3 inches, your lawn may grow to 5 or 6 inches before you mow it again. Here are some problems associated with letting your grass grow too long: Lawn thinning.
You'll know you're cutting too short if brown and tan patches begin to appear on grass blades. What Height Should Be My Goal? Once the weather warms up, most types of grass should be kept between two and two and a half inches.
How often should you mow? Normally, weekly mowing is the rule, but some lawns need cutting more often. Other lawns will grow more slowly and might need cutting only once every ten days or two weeks. Generally, don't cut off more than one third of the grass blade.
No Mow May was first popularized by Plantlife, an organization based in the United Kingdom, but is now gaining traction across North America. The goal of No Mow May is to pause mowing during the month of May, allowing flowers to bloom in your lawn to help early season pollinators.
Is mowing before or after rain better? It is always better to mow before rain if possible. If your grass is dry, but you see rain on the way, it is a good idea to mow the yard before the rain arrives. Otherwise, the next best time to mow is when your grass has completely dried after rainfall.
60% of weeds in any lawn can be controlled with proper, weekly mowing. 60%!! You cannot rely on herbicide applications completely, weekly mowing HAS to be part of your plan to control weeds. So, let me reiterate…the presence of weeds in your lawn is NEVER a good reason to skip a mow.
A mowing height between 2.5 to 3 inches is best for most of the season, except during summer stresses when the lawn mowing height should be raised one-half inch to mow at 3 to 3.5 inches. Raising the mowing height provides more insulation from summer heat and reduces water loss from your soil.
The short answer is yes, according to lawn care experts. Leaving grass clippings on the lawn can actually be healthy for the grass, as it helps build a strong and nutrient-rich soil. This practice is known as “grasscycling,” and it has become increasingly popular in recent years.
Perform the first grass cut of the year in spring, around mid-March. From there on, mow the lawn at least once every week. Try to keep your grass' height the same all throughout spring. For most lawns the ideal height would be 2.5-4cm (1-1.5in).
Mid-morning (between 8 and 10 a.m.) tends to be the best time of day for mowing your lawn. It allows enough time for dew to dry, resulting in strong, perky blades of grades, while avoiding the hottest periods of the day.
Mowing it in the midday sun can stunt its growth and kill off weak grass. Between 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. is a better time to cut grass than in the early morning or midday; however, the late afternoon is better for maintaining the health of your lawn.