09/09/2023
The state of the lawn mowing industry.
In my opinion the quality of lawn mowing businesses has fallen off a cliff. Sure anyone can buy a truck and a mower and start cutting lawns but that's a far cry from having the ability to mow a lawn that keeps it healthy and strong. Mowing is the most important thing you do to your lawn and if not done properly greatly affects the quality and look of your lawn.
Lawns should be mown at 3-31/2" during the spring and summer and down to 2" or less over the winter.
Lawns should be mown every week or more. Cutting too much feel blade greatly affects the grass plants. The damage caused requires the plant to use more water and fertilizer to repair itself.
Lawns should always be bagged of it clippings. People will say to leave the clippings to put back nutrients into the lawn but there is less benefit to leaving them to bagging them. Bagging clippings takes all that dead material out of the lawn. That dead material acts as a sponge when you water, limiting what gets to the root system. Bagging also takes the w**d seeds your mowing back out of the lawn reducing the amount of seeds that will germinate next year.
Lastly lawns need to be cut with a sharp blade. You typically mow your lawn 26 times a year and after about 6- mowings your blade needs to be sharpened. Most people do it in the spring and that's it. Should be done 3 to 4 times a year.
The typical lawn care company today knows nothing about lawn health. They mow too fast, don't turn properly, ripping up the grass, they sharpen blades once a week or less. They should be sharpened daily. They don't bag clippings, leaving the lawn full of w**d seeds and dead material. They don't w**d each properly, they don't cut in different directions every week and can't cut a straight line.
When I started, getting your lawn cut was a luxury and you wanted it to look like it. If I mowed lawns like they do today I'd be out of business in a couple years.
I will say , if this lack of quality is tolerated it has and will continue.