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| West Island Lawn Care / Lawn Mowing - Grass Cutting From
$20/visit
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Services available:
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Service Areas:
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Affordable rates (Prices include TAX):
Your grass needs to be mowed often enough so that no more than 1/3 of the leaf blade length is cut away during any one mowing. For example, if you wanted your Kentucky bluegrass mowed at 2 inches, the height should not be allowed to grow any higher than 3 inches before you mow it down to 2 inches. If only 1 inch is mowed, then 1/3 of the blade length is cut away and the 1/3 mowing rule has been followed.
On the west Island of Montreal a well maintained lawn will require mowing every 5 days from about mid may to the end of June. From July to the first week of August when the weather's dryer your lawn may only need mowing every 7-10 days. If it's a particularly dry summer your lawn may only need cutting every 2 weeks. Towards the first week of September your lawn may begin to recover from the dryer weather and require a cutting every 7 days slowing to every 14 days into late September and October. On average, over the course of a season you'll require a mowing roughly every 7 days which means that from mid May through mid October you'll probably mow your lawn about 20 times.
In the spring, due mainly to increased moisture, your grass will need to be cut more than once a week in order to maintain the 1/3 mowing rule.
Proper mowing frequency is a key to mulching and a more natural, healthy lawn
by returning the clippings which in turn act as fertilizer for the grass,
maintain soil quality (less fertilizer), and hold in moisture.
If long periods of wet weather prevent you from mowing and your grass gets too tall,
adjust your mower to the highest setting and mow the lawn. Once the grass and
clippings dry out then lower the height adjustment to the usual height and mow
the grass again at a 90 degree angle to the direction you used last time. This
method is often dubbed: "Double Cutting."
Grass clippings (mulch) contain nitrogen, phosphorus
and potassium. Studies have been done that indicate when clippings are
bagged and removed, 20 to 25
percent more fertilizer was necessary to maintain comparable color and
quality as areas where clippings were left on the lawn.
Despite what most people will tell you, grass clippings do not contribute to thatch
problems if proper
mowing practices are followed.
While some companies recycle grass clippings and sell the resultant compost
back to you the following year, you can save a significant amount of money
by using a mulching mower and letting the clippings naturally fertilize and
maintain your lawn's soil quality.
Your lawn should be mowed when it is dry. Wet grass is more difficult to cut and will clog your equipment. As well wet grass clippings will clump together which, when left on the lawn, will create dead patches and promote mould growth. If there are long periods of wet weather you shouldn't delay mowing for too long just because the grass is wet; however it can be left a little longer since, due to the increased moisture content of the soil, the grass will recover quickly if it has to be cut a little more than normal.
The direction of mowing should be altered every one to two mowings. Mowing at right angles (90 degrees) to the previous direction will help prevent the grass from repeatedly being pushed in one direction and laying over, an important consideration at high mowing heights. Also if scalping areas of the lawn is a problem, the different mowing directions will help minimize continual scalping in any one area.
How low you cut your grass is probably the most important part of mowing. Like other plants, turf grasses, make sugars through photosynthesis in their leaves which is how they develop into a high quality lawn. Turf grasses, if cut too low, have significantly less leaf area and can't sustain the photosynthesis rates they need to keep the plant (both leaves and root system) healthy.
There is also a correlation between the height of your grass and the depth/mass of your lawn's root system. Studies involving Kentucky bluegrass have shown that root growth was at least double when the grass was mowed at a 2.0 inch height verses a 3/4 of an inch. Generally speaking if your grass is cut too short it will have a shallow root system with significantly lower root mass. The consequences of a weak and shallow root system are:
In both cases you're much more likely to see loss of grass plants and
permanent lawn damage. Keeping your grass cut at a higher, more reasonable
height, during the dryer summer months will keep the soil cooler which will keep
in the moisture and help maintain a healthy looking lawn.
Below is a table containing recommended mowing heights of various types of
grasses:
| Mowing Heights During | ||
|---|---|---|
| Turfgrass Species | Spring and Fall | Summer Dry Weather Periods |
| Kentucky bluegrass | 2.0 - 2.5 | 2.5 - 3.0 |
| Perennial ryegrass | 2.0 - 2.5 | 2.5 - 3.0 |
| Fine Fescues | 2.0 - 2.5 | 2.5 - 3.0 |
| Tall Fescue | 2.5 - 3.0 | 2.5 - 3.0 |
In the fall, you should continue to mow your lawn as long as the grass is growing. If your desired height is 2.5 inches, your can lower the cutting height to 2.0 inches during the last 1 to 2 mowings of the season. Cutting the grass a little lower heading into winter is OK if your lawn is in an area that has outbreaks of winter diseases.
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