Recently, we came across a debate raging in a local backyard and it was all about the best way to mow the lawn. He said, “straight up and down the yard”. She said, “round using the spiral effect”. They approached the Daleys Turf team for their opinion.
Well it turns out that they were both right and they were both wrong. It really doesn’t matter whether you mow in nice straight lines, spirals, clockwise or counter-clockwise. It makes no difference but here’s what does matter…
Frequent and close mowing in the same direction or pattern each time you mow can cause the lawn shoots to lean in the direction of the cut and cause grain to develop. Grain isn’t usually a problem with longer or taller turfs, but on shorter turf it isn’t desirable as it alters the lay of the lawn. Mowing in the exact same way each time and without a catcher will also mean a build-up of lawn cuttings in the same spots on the lawn time after time, which can cause moisture to become trapped underneath and fungal problems to emerge.
By mowing in a different pattern or direction each time the shoots of the turf will tend to grow more upright and this also looks neat and more uniform. This will also cause the lawn clippings to be more evenly distributed, although using a catcher and disposing of the clippings is always recommended.
As an added bonus, mowing in a different pattern will change the position of the mower wheels and so reduce excessive wear or ruts over time. As they say variety is the spice of life!
Where possible, alter the mowing direction or pattern for each mowing, but in sloping areas you must always mow in the way that is the safest, even if that does mean the same way every time.
As we in South East Queensland head into the cooler months, more care needs to be taken with the height of our lawn too. Make sure that is it not cut excessively short nor left to become excessively long heading in to Winter.
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