Mowing your lawn is much more than just cutting the grass every Saturday. One of the most fundamental steps to a perfect lawn is getting the mowing height right for your type of lawn and for a particular season. We at Portage Turf Specialists LLC want to pass along a few mowing tips we abide by to keep lawns looking healthy and green.
Why Mowing Height Matters
Mowing height is important because the grass blade is the part that absorbs sunshine and then miraculously converts it into food! Imagine if you were a blade of grass and got hungry, all you had to do was stand outside and soak up some rays! However, if you cut the grass too low and remove too much of the grass blade, your lawn cannot soak in the nutrients it needs to be healthy and full.
Choosing the Right Height
Each season has its own nuances, and here are a few rules we at Portage Turf Specialists LLC abide by in our lawn care services:
- In order for your grass to stay healthy and soak up the necessary sun, never remove more than one-third of the grass blade at any one mowing. This may mean you’ll have to mow more often during prime growing times (usually spring and early fall).
- During the spring and early fall, most Ohio grasses will thrive when you set your mower height at 3 to 4 inches. In the summer, set the mower deck a little higher. When in doubt- just take the mower to the highest setting and prepare yourself for the greenest lawn on the block- talk about lawn envy!
- Never go below the minimum recommended height except for the last few mows of the season. Right before it’s time to put your lawnmower away, gradually begin lowering the mowing height to around 2 inches for most turf grasses. This will help to prevent grass from laying over in the winter and creating snowmold.
Make Each Blade Matter
Leave the clippings on the lawn after you mow not only to save you time and energy but also to benefit your lawn. Leaving clippings not only helps your lawn, it keeps valuable organic matter out of landfills helping reduce your overall carbon footprint. The clippings decompose and add vital nutrients back into the soil. Clippings contain the same beneficial nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium nutrients as that expensive bag of fertilizer as well as thousands of pounds of valuable lawn organic matter. In fact, clippings can provide up to one-third of the annual feeding requirement for your lawn. So make each blade of grass count, and leave it be.
Questions?
If you want additional lawn care tips or would like to schedule an on-site assessment, contact Portage Turf Specialists LLC at (330) 296-8873. We can help you determine how to get your Ohio grass as healthy as possible by developing a lawn care plan for every season. Check out our current lawn care specials, and give us a call today!
