Here ’s when to stop mowing your lawn in fall for healthier grass in outpouring .
Smart mowing in the fall lead to a healthy lawn in springiness . place too tall sward into wintertime , and field mouse , mole , and other gnawer may take up residence in the thick , invite grassy insurance coverage . foreshorten your lawn too myopic at the end of the growing season , and winter damage is more likely . Bothtimely mowingand mowing height are important factors infall lawn care . Whether your lawn goes dormant in wintertime or merely slow its increase , these late - fallmowing strategieswill leading to a welcoming gullible lawn in spring .
Mow While Grass Is Growing
Simply put , if your lawn is still maturate , keep cut down . Lawn grass will continue to grow long after many recurrent and annual landscape painting plant go abeyant or are killed by Robert Lee Frost in fall . While it is beguiling to park the lawn mower for the time of year after compost containers of annuals and harvesting the last vegetables from the garden , cover mop your grass as take .
allow the stature of your lawn , rather than the time of class , guide when to pout . When mow sward , the destination is to never remove more than one - third of the leaf sword . sward scientist call this idea the “ one - third ” rule . If your lawn mower deck of cards is set to 3 in , pout grass before it is 4.5 inch marvellous all summertime . By take out just one - third of the length of the leaf sword at each mowing , you promote good supergrass growth in many ways , from enhanced root health to reduce Teach potential .
When the pasturage no longer reaches theoptimal mow height of your turf , it is no longer growing . The optimal mowing heightvaries by grass character . Get all the contingent for your greensward type here .
Credit:Saklakova / Getty Images
Saklakova / Getty Images
Mowing Cool-Season Grass
If snow is part of your winter landscape , your sward is potential a nerveless - season green goddess type . Kentucky bluegrass , all right Festuca elatior , and repeated ryegrass are cool - time of year grasses that thrive in the cool temperatures of outpouring and fall . It ’s not uncommon for these grasses to go dormant in summer — turning brown and crispy — and then ricochet back to living in dip when regular moisture and cool temperatures turn back .
As the air temperature drops in fall , the soil temperature often remains optimum for coolheaded - time of year grass ontogeny . As long as rainfall is regular and the soil remains warm , the turf will mature chop-chop and need frequent mowing .
Mow cool - season grass until it is no longer growing . Be sure the last mowing of the season leaves the grass at 3 to 4 inches tall . It is best to err on the side of more or less short supergrass than long sward . Too tenacious grass is moresusceptible to lawn diseasesin springiness because it does n’t dry out quickly . Moist , sluggish grass and moderate temperatures create the idealistic environment for disease to take clutch .
Mowing Warm-Season Grass
Warm - season grasses , such asbermudagrass , St. Augustinegrass , zoysiagrass , and centipedegrass , slow up their growth significantly in late spill . With the slowed growth , expect to pout less frequently . Help warm - time of year pasture acclimate to the changing growing atmospheric condition by raising the lawn mower pack of cards about a half - inch . If you were maintaining your lawn at 2 inches marvelous , move the deck to cut dope at 2 ½ inches tall in tardy descent . Increasing the cutting stature will give the pasture more leafage surface to collect sunlight .
Mowing warm - time of year grasses in late fall and winter is often more about grass control condition than cutting the greensward . nerveless - season lawn weeds , such as burweed , annual blue grass , and chickweed , are exceedingly participating when fond - season grasses are dormant or develop slowly in winter . While pre - emerging herbicides practice in September or October are the best way to control these pesky pot , late fall and wintertime mowing is a dominance method if they pop up after the weedkiller app window passes .
What to Do About Leaves
Mow leaves into the lawn or remove them with aleaf vacuum . Leaves are full of worthful nutrients that will enrich the territory , contributing to healthy turf . Chop leave behind into fine pieces by mow over them a couple of times . you’re able to even graze leave-taking out of landscape bottom and chop them .
The ok leaf pieces will percolate into the sward and rot quickly . A couple of tips for chop leave-taking : Mow when leaf are dry and raise the mower deck of cards a few inches to admit a thick layer of leaves .
Leave the Clippings
Whether you aremowing in bound , summer , or previous fall , leave the clippings on the lawn . Grass clippings rapidly violate down , improving soil wellness and make nutrients available to turf grass . Think of grass trim as free fertilizer .
