You’ll need to mow your lawn correctly if you wish to maintain it like a professional. This activity keeps your grass short, neat, and clean, and it enhances your home's curb appeal. Although it may seem like a simple activity, most people don’t mow their lawn properly. This article highlights four clever ways to help you mow your lawn like a professional.
1. Sharpen Your Lawn Mower's Blades
If you want your lawn to look good at all times, use a mower with sharp blades to cut your grass. If you cut your grass with blunt blades, it can tear your grass and result in uneven, brown edges. Additionally, a dull mower blade weakens your grass, making it susceptible to insect damage and diseases. Weak grass is also susceptible to other stressors like drought and heat.
There are several tools you can use to sharpen your lawn mower blade, including:
- A drill and blade sharpening stone
- A bench grinder
- A clamp and file
When sharpening your lawn mower blade, you need to remove it from the mower. Try to maintain your manufacturer's blade surface angle when you sharpen to protect the functionality of your mower. After you finish sharpening, put the blade back and tighten it using a wrench to ensure it doesn't come off when mowing.
2. Avoid Mowing Wet Grass
If you mow wet grass, it can result in an uneven cut. Wet grass clippings can also clog your mower, making it drop lumps of grass on your lawn. If you don't rake up this grass on time, it may suffocate young grass and form brown stains. Additionally, if you use your mower on wet grass, this machine may leave wheel ruts on your grass, making your grass look uneven.
For these reasons, you need to mow your lawns in the evening, when the grass is dry. Evenings are also cooler, so when you mow in the evening, you protect yourself and your lawn from heat stress as you mow.
However, if you must mow on wet grass, ensure you spray silicone on the lower side of your mower's deck to prevent grass from sticking on your mower. Also, ensure you put the exact amount of fuel you need to complete the task. If you fill your tank, your mower will become heavy, increasing your chances of leaving ruts on your lawn.
3. Leave Clippings on Your Lawn
Most people prefer to collect grass clippings after mowing their lawn. Although a grass-clipping-free lawn looks attractive, you need to leave these clippings on your lawn. These clippings decompose, providing your grass with extra nutrients to flourish. Grass clippings also help your soil to retain moisture.
Nevertheless, this method is suitable if you mow your lawn regularly since young and tender grass blades break down faster. If you don't mow your lawn regularly, your grass leaves will become long and mature. Although such grass clippings contain extra nutrients, long clippings may suffocate young shoots, preventing them from growing. If you wish to leave these clippings on your lawn, use a mulching kit.
4. Leave Some Length
Often, people prefer to cut their grass short for a thick, compact finish. Some people also think that cutting their grass short is a good option since they won't have to mow frequently. However, don’t cut your grass too short.
If you cut your grass leaves too short, the roots will have no shade. When the sun reaches the roots of your grass, they can become yellow. Your grass depends on its leaves to generate food through photosynthesis. If you cut these leaves too short, your grass will get fewer nutrients, and it may eventually die. To prevent these issues, never mow your grass shorter than
two or three inches.
A mowed lawn enhances your home's curb appeal and increases your property value. However, you need to mow your lawn correctly to make your home look more attractive. For more tips on mowing your lawn like a professional,
contact Novasack Turf Farm.
