Though lawn mowing is a task most of us leave as a chore for our teenagers, there are proper mowing techniques that can help you keep your lawn healthy and looking its best.
1. Make sure you are gentle with damaged grass. For a lawn that is recovering from insect damage, drought or disease – raise the mower height a notch or two.
2. Cutting wet or wilted grass is not a good idea. You want to avoid cutting wet grass because this can cause brown spots and cutting wilted grass during high heat can severely damage your lawn.
3. Make sure you avoid scalping. Scalping happens when you let grass grow tall, then cut more than 1/3 of the leaf blade. By cutting your grass too low you may be cutting into the crowns of the plants which will damage your lawn.
4. Check your mower blades. Making sure that your mower blades are sharp is important because you want the cuts to be clean and precise. Frayed grass blades not only lose moisture but cause discoloration.
5. Re-use those grass clippings. By recycling your grass clippings, you can reduce water loss, return nutrients to soil and lower soil temperatures.