Dallas Lawn Care

Now that summer is approaching in the southern hemisphere, those of us in dry climates fortunate enough to own a lawn, should be beginning the regular mowing regime which will take us thru into the onset of winter.

The most common lawn grasses in hot dry climates are perennials like the Bermuda grasses, Cynodon, Zoysia varieties, Kikuya grass ( Pennisetum ), or St. Augustine grass, (Stenotaphrum secundatum). With the exception of the latter, these grasses should have been de-thatched sometime in the spring. This will be done either by mechanical scarifying, or by shaving to the ground. This intense treatment must not be carried out on grasses like St.Augustine, that spread by stolons, but only, like the species mentioned, on grasses that develop rhizomes.

After the grass has come back - a technique that will take anything up to a month, we start our regular mowing. Regular means regular! Not when we want to it, not when the grass is a foot high, but as a regular activity. Other than watering, regular mowing at the correct height is perhaps the most critical factor determining the quality of the lawn.

At what height if the blade be set? The peak of the blade is set by one straightforward rule - the grass should be as green after mowing as it was beforehand! No more than 40% of leaf length should be removed at anybody mowing. Never scalp the lawn from this time on until next spring's de-thatching. You can decide the right height by mowing a little swathe of grass with the blade set high, then go back, lowering the blade's height until as mentioned some 40% of the leaf is cut. This 40% does not include the stems, that the leaves are attached, but only the leaves themselves.

So how frequently should you mow the grass? The solution is - it depends. As we've established the fact that not so much leaf should be removed at single shot, it follows that the longer the interval between mowings the longer the grass is going to be, and therefore the more leaf is likely removed. So do not let the grass get so long this situation arises. If the lawn is growing well - a function of many factors like satisfactory moisture, nutriment levels, and well aerated soil, then you must mow once each week at the least. Each 4 or five days could be better. Did you know the the Greens on golf courses are customarily mowed a day?

What we need to remember is the leaf, as the plant's photosynthesizing organ, is its source of energy. Consistent removing of OTT amounts of leaf during the plant's most active growing season, decreases the potential energy ready to the plant, when it most wishes it. Also, scalping the grass, which occurs when the blade is too low, or when the grass is too high, exposes the stems to direct daylight which can regularly cause direct damage to the grass.

As a last thought. The healthier the grass the more hardy it is to pests and sicknesses. Inversely , as the grass weakens, frequently as a result of a consistently poor mowing regime, the more vulnerable it becomes to pathogens, and the more weed species may be able to build themselves, thus further weakening the lawn.
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