NWI Lawn Mowing Tips

It’s almost time to start mowing our lawns here in NW Indiana so I thought I’d help ya’ll out with some basic mowing tips. To some, these may be obvious, but to others, I have seen your lawns and ya’ll definitely need some help!

Mowing Tall NWI

You gotta get rid of this “if I cut it short, I won’t have to cut it as much” attitude you have guys! Because, really, you are right. If you scalp that lawn repeatedly, you won’t have any grass to mow at all eventually! It will thin out over time and weeds and crabgrass will surely invade! Then you will be “that guy on the block” who is at fault for all the weed problems up and down the street! You don’t wanna be that guy do ya?

On a serious note, however, grass plants need leaf surface (the blades) to grab sunlight for photosynthesis. The production of simple sugars is done in the leaves/blades and those sugars are sent down the grass plant to strengthen crown and root structure. Root structure (thickening) allows the grass to grab more water and soil nutrients and send them back up the line to allow for more growth and more sugar production. Get that? it’s a cycle that must not be destroyed! All of this goodness is what allows the turf to fight off disease and insect pressures, and survive drought too!

Cutting the lawn is fine, of course, as long as you don’t remove more than 1/3 of the grass leaf structure in any one mowing and keep the overall length at 2.75 to 3 inches. This means you need to cut consistently every week and mow tall. If you are not willing or able to get a tape measure out, then set your lawn mower on the second-to-highest setting in the Spring, and even go up to the very highest setting in the summer. Here is a fairly boring but helpful vid I did on this very subject.

Sharp Mower Blade

Another very important aspect to lawn cutting, especially in NW Indiana where we have primarily Kentucky Bluegrass and Perennial Ryegrass lawns, is blade sharpness. If you cut with a dull mower blade, you will be ripping grass blades instead of cutting them cleanly. Ripped blades make the lawn look brown overall, but they also allow disease pathogens an easy entry into the leaf tissue.

Clean, sharp cuts heal fast and easy, making everything look tight and buttoned up! It’s like shaving your face (or your legs ladies) with a dull razor vs a sharp one. The dull razor rips and shreds, but the sharp one cuts those whiskers clean!

If you need your lawn mower blade sharpened, Hubingers in Crown Point will get you hooked up quick and easy. It’s best actually to have two blades on hand in your garage. This way you always have one ready to go. I highly recommend you get your blade sharpened in the early spring, and again in the mid summer. This will ensure clean cuts all year long!