How much should you mow?

[littlebittybobby]

Okay---like it says.

[rosarugosa]

We only have a very small area devoted to lawn at this point because we've converted most of our yard into garden beds. My husband mows every 2 weeks or so. It's better to keep the grass on the long side, especially in the hot weather, and then there is also more clover for the bunnies to eat.

[Tybee]

I have been mowing the yard about once a week and the field about every 2-3 depending on the rain. I am trying to encourage the yard and I think mowing short has helped. There was no yard there when I started, just brambles and tiger lilies.

[catherine]

We try to keep up with our neighbors who are super-vigilant about their lawns. They cut them shorter than they should (beliow the 3-inch "raise the blade" rule) and I can set my calendar by one of my neighbor's weekly schedules.

Part of our problem is that we had very old and unreliable mowers: a push one for the smaller areas and a riding mower for the big lawn--a task we kind of share with the neighborhood--we take turns when we can.

I got so sick of our lawn looking terrible, especially the day after our adjacent neighbor does his lawn, that I asked DH if we could get a new electric mower, which we did. I couldn't even start the old gas one, so I had no options before. But now I can mow if DH is busy. We are still definitely not in the regular 1/week camp, though. I would say it's more like once every other week.

One good thing is, as fussy as my neighbors are about their lawns, I don't believe any of them use herbicides or pesticides, so I haven't heard any complaints about my dandelions and clover!

[iris lilies]

The only correct answer to this non-question is:


You should mow frequently, practically all the time. Mowing should be the center of your life.

Thank meeeee.

[littlebittybobby]

okay----i have taken your responses, included them in my files of case histories. hopefully, some others will come forward with their story about mowing. but yeah---i will be doing a writeup about some extreme cases i've encountered, right here in the immediate vicinity of my hillbilly shackk. thankk mee.

[pinkytoe]

Probably twice a summer since we got rid of the K Bluegrass. I have the kind of old men retired neighbors who fawn over the state of their lawns. Water, water, mow, mow.

[Alan]

I mow a lot. I've always believed that lots of men consider the state of their lawn the same way others may consider the state of their home's interior. I guess I'm one of those old retired men who think if it doesn't appear neat, orderly and well maintained, its time to mow.

[Rogar]

I probably average about every week and a half, depending on the season. There are a lot of well cared for lawns in the neighborhood and I try to keep up with things without getting too obsessive. There are a lot of elderly in my area and the majority of my neighbors use a lawn service that goes through the hood once a week.

[Tybee]

I like my yard areas to look neat and orderly, like Alan. There are so many woods where we live that carving a lawn so we could sit out with the dogs in peace felt like a great accomplishment. It has taken three years of mowing to get those areas to look like a lawn and we like to sit out there or garden out there. I realized that for over 50 years I have been the designated lawn mower in my various families. My dad was a Marine, so his surroundings were kept orderly, and I think I took that on from him. Overgrown lawns bug me and I find myself mentally mowing when I see them.
Maybe I'm just OCD, I don't know.

[nswef]

My husband has become more concerned about the state of the lawn. He mows much more than when we worked. A riding mower for about an acre. We have a meadow that we pay to have mown. He has learned that it doesn't all have to be mowed in one day! It is about once a week and weed eating once a month. I edge the flower beds but when I get lax, he'll weed whack the edges, too. No fertilizer, pesticide. He likes to keep the critters-snakes, mice,ticks away that come with higher grass.

[rosarugosa]

LBB: How often do you mow?

[littlebittybobby]

okay---yeah hey rr; I wouldA responded sooner to that question you axed mee,, but I been busy combating the spread of godless vegetation, pluss keeping litter boxes clean & food dishes filled. plus, repainting a piece of furniture I made in 1974. but yeah---I mow too .much but not enough. see? (to be continued)thanks mee

[rosarugosa]

I think I might see. Would this mean that you mow too much from your point of view, but not enough to satisfy picky lawn-obsessed neighbors?

[littlebittybobby]

okay----noneuvum are picky, lawn-obsessed, nor am I motivated ta please them. but yeah---at least one has the notion that being manly by stuff such as having a "sharp truck"/and mowing to excess are essential. yup. But as I mentioned, to me it really has no sociological/psychological value. Keeping the vegetation cleared around your abode is kind of essential, as it reduces habitat for critters you don't want, eliminates noxious weeds such as poison ivy, etc., and the random growth of softwood trees that grow rapidly and topple on your home & vehicles, etc. Too much shade facilitates mold growth on buildings. It is not so much a matter of esthetics or status, but a purely practical matter. Yup. but yeah---hope that helps you some.

[littlebittybobby]

okay-----Lonnie Moe passed away, last week. i need to x-plain just who lonnie mow was. see---the house down the street where the couple lived and died recently had owned the place since 2000. prior to that, there was a couple who lived there 7-8 years, and priot to that, "gramps" lived there maybe a year or two. probably, he moved on because he dreaded mowing the large lot & the sound---the roar of the adjacent interstate highway. but yeah----before that, lonnie mow & his twin wife lived there until 92. lonnie got married at 18 & drove a delivery truck for 40 years that bore the slogan: "it pays to keep clean". lonnie & his female counterpart were both blonde & of german descent, and liked to keep things nice & tidy, and of course---that meant frequent mowing; the whole 2 acres, crew cut. but they moved on to an upgrade, and then another upgrade. but then---just now, i saw his obituary, at age 68. it said he was devoted to his female counterpart, his VERY interesting job driving a van that said: "it pays to keep clean", and of course mowing. that was the thing, with that guy. he made several comments to me that indicated that neatness & order were VERY important to him, like any good german-american. jah. hope that helps you kids some. thankk mee.