The mowing regime is an important part of maintaining a healthy lawn and is usually the main gardening activity between March and October. The cutting height and mowing frequency will depend on the purpose and look you want to achieve, whether it be a close-cut ‘classic’ lawn, those enviable stripes or a longer-grassed wildlife lawn.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!There are many different lawn mowers available your mower will probably be one of your most-used pieces of power gardening equipment, so take some time to consider what type of mower you need before purchase.
Hand-push, petrol or battery: Hand-push mowers are a good option for small areas of grass, are quiet, have zero running costs and are good for the environment. Electric mowers are usually cheaper to buy than petrol mowers but are not as powerful as petrol mowers and come with a cord.
Cordless (no annoying cable) battery-powered mowers are leading the market and well worth considering especially with their green and environmental credentials. Petrol powered outdoor tools produce 3 x the emissions of a family car making the battery option even more desirable for a cleaner, quieter operation.
You will also find that the manufacturer’s batteries fit across their range of outdoor power tools from lawnmowers, and ride-on tractors to chain saws, leaf blowers, and many other gardening devices.
Lawn size and cut
Mowing a big lawn can take a lot of time, so choosing models with a wider cut can make a significant difference to the time required for a modest increase in investment. If you have a very large grass area or paddock, consider a self-propelled model or a ride-on mower tractor.
Not all mowers are created equal! Some will give a much higher quality cut than others. If you are after a high-quality finish, consider a cylinder mower. This type of mower features a rear roller, cuts a lot shorter and is good for achieving that striped effect!
You’ll get the best results with sharp mower blades. You can sharpen rotary blades yourself, but for sharpening a cylinder mower, but we recommend you give your mower an annual TLC service and bald sharpen at a professional gardening services firm.
Which mower is best?
There are four main types of mowers: cylinder, rotary, hover and ride-on. Mulching mowers are a type of rotary mower.
- A cylinder mower gives a high-quality cut, is suitable for fine lawns and sports turf. The blades are arranged on a cylinder and cut with a scissor-like action. with low cutting heights.
- A rotary mower is suitable for most ornamental lawns. This mower has a horizontally spinning blade. A rotary mower will not give as fine a cut as a cylinder mower, but it will cut longer grass and handle uneven surfaces. Ones with a rear roller are available that will give a striped finish.
- A hover mower is a rotary mower but sits on a cushion of air instead of wheels. It can handle long grass and uneven surfaces.
- A mulching mower is a type of rotary mower. Most lawn mowers come with a collection box to collect the clippings, but mulching mowers instead chop up the clippings very finely and deposit them back into the turf. The clippings are barely visible.
Using a mulching mower will return nutrients back to the root zone. However, when mulching mowers are used for very lush growth (when the grass is long), the excess clippings may have to be collected and placed on the compost heap. Some models give the option of mulching or collecting the clippings.
- A ride-on mower or tractor is becoming increasingly popular and ideal for very large lawns and paddocks; there are many brands and options. It will cut down on your mowing time and make the task so much more achievable and enjoyable!
Ride-on mowers are petrol or battery powered with enhanced features such as zero turn for ease in navigating hard landscaping, furniture, trees, and borders
In summer: On average for a conventional lawn, you should mow twice a week, reducing to once a week or longer during periods of drought. Flower-rich lawns can be mown every four to six weeks, and long grassed lawns are best cut once or twice in the summer, after June.
In spring and autumn: For a conventional lawn mow once a week. Leave flower-rich and long-grassed lawns uncut in spring unless growth is vigorous.
Over winter: Mowing is usually not necessary unless the weather is mild, and the grass is still growing. In this case, mow occasionally with a high cut setting. Do not attempt to do this if the ground conditions are soft or frozen, or during spells of cold winds that dry the ground.
Dry and shady areas may need less frequent mowing than areas in full sun and never mow wet or frosty grass as this can cause damage and compact the soil. Wait until later in the day when the lawn has dried out or defrosted.
How to create a striped finish
A striped lawn looks quintessentially British and is easy to achieve if your mower has a rear roller. Wheeled rotary mowers do not produce good quality striping. Rectangular lawns are easier to stripe than irregularly shaped lawns but start by mowing around the edge of the lawn.
For square or rectangular lawns, work from the left side, mowing up and down the lawn using the straight lawn edge as a guide to get a straight line.
For circular or irregular shaped lawns, line up the mower with a focal point to achieve an initial straight line across the widest point. This first straight line can be your guide for subsequent stripes
At each turn, line up the mower so that the next mown stripe slightly overlaps the last. Remember to empty the clippings box regularly so that clumps of clippings don’t appear on the lawn, clogging the mower and spoiling the effect.
It is a good idea to vary the direction of cut, alternating straight with diagonal stripes on different mowing session, so that ruts do not form in the lawn.