What You Need to Know About Fertilizing and Watering - Southwest ...

Mowing at the right height
Each time you mow your lawn, you stress the grass. Cutting grass
causes temporary damage to the plant. The plant must then repair the
damage to the leaf blade. Mowing height and root depth are directly
related. Mowing higher results in deeper roots. If the grass is focusing on
repairing the blade, it can’t expend the energy needed to grow longer
and stronger roots.
The roots of the grass are very important to the drought tolerance of
your lawn. If the grass has shallow roots, it must rely on more
frequent irrigation or rain. However if the roots of the grass are longer,
they can reach water that is further down in the soil and, therefore,
need less frequent irrigation or rain.
The amount of blade length that is cut off during mowing is
important to the appearance and health of your lawn. Remove no more
than 1 /3 of the blade of grass at a time. To measure if you are cutting the
lawn at the right height, place a ruler on the soil and measure to the top
of the mowed grass. See the following table for recommended mowing
heights.
Another stressor to the grass is the use of dull lawnmower blades.
The dull blades chew up the grass and cause excessive damage. The
plant must then put more energy into repair. Mowing with dull blades
can also cause your lawn to turn a brownish color. Sharpen the blade(s)
every couple of months or so, especially during growing season.
The frequency of mowing is also important to your lawn. When the
seasons change, the amount of growth changes as well. Your lawn might
need to be mowed twice a week in the summer because of the fast
growth rate, but once a week, or not at all, in the winter.
Use a mulching mower. If mowing occurs at the recommended
frequency, leaving clippings on the lawn will not result in excess thatch.
By mowing your lawn more often
than is needed, your lawn does
not have a chance to grow in any
other way except to repair
mowing damage.
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