1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:08,360
Hello and welcome to the lawn hustle season number one episode number 10.

2
00:00:11,880 --> 00:00:16,600
I want my podcast to be not only entertaining.

3
00:00:17,680 --> 00:00:26,720
I want it to be educational and I hope that this episode is more educational

4
00:00:26,720 --> 00:00:30,840
because spring is here.

5
00:00:32,520 --> 00:00:34,760
Grass is growing.

6
00:00:35,800 --> 00:00:43,680
Grass is turning green and it's almost time to mow.

7
00:00:45,000 --> 00:00:53,080
So we need to know what is that optimal grass cutting height.

8
00:00:53,080 --> 00:00:56,600
Why do we need to know that?

9
00:00:56,600 --> 00:01:07,360
And the answer is simple because it's important to maintain your lawn's health.

10
00:01:07,360 --> 00:01:16,600
If you mow your lawn too short, it can damage your lawn.

11
00:01:16,600 --> 00:01:24,600
It can damage the root system and your grass will not grow like it should.

12
00:01:28,600 --> 00:01:36,600
There are some factors to determine how short you should mow it or how long you should leave it.

13
00:01:38,600 --> 00:01:42,600
Number one, your geographical location.

14
00:01:42,600 --> 00:01:45,600
What state do you reside in?

15
00:01:47,600 --> 00:01:49,600
Where do you run your business?

16
00:01:52,600 --> 00:01:58,600
Not only geographical location, but the type of grass you have.

17
00:01:59,600 --> 00:02:05,600
Do you live in a state that has warm season grasses?

18
00:02:05,600 --> 00:02:12,600
Or do you live in a state that has cool season grasses?

19
00:02:13,600 --> 00:02:15,600
It makes a difference.

20
00:02:19,600 --> 00:02:30,600
So you need to find out the type of grass you have or the type of grass your clients have.

21
00:02:30,600 --> 00:02:50,600
For me, I run professional lawn maintenance in East Central Indiana in a city of 17,000 Newcastle, Indiana.

22
00:02:50,600 --> 00:03:05,600
My clients primarily have fine fescue, Kentucky bluegrass, or perino ryegrass.

23
00:03:05,600 --> 00:03:20,600
Now in extreme southern Indiana, they can have a warm season grass because it doesn't get as snowy and as cold in the winter.

24
00:03:21,600 --> 00:03:25,600
So they might have some zoysia grasses.

25
00:03:25,600 --> 00:03:34,600
And in that case, when their grass gets three to four inches, it's time for them to mow.

26
00:03:35,600 --> 00:03:48,600
But I would recommend they do not mow shorter than two inches and they should not leave it longer than two and a half inches.

27
00:03:48,600 --> 00:04:02,600
And if you are in or around Newcastle, the surrounding areas, I would recommend to you when your grass gets four to six inches tall.

28
00:04:03,600 --> 00:04:05,600
It's time to mow.

29
00:04:06,600 --> 00:04:14,600
But you don't want to mow more than three inches short.

30
00:04:14,600 --> 00:04:21,600
And you don't want to leave it more than four inches long.

31
00:04:25,600 --> 00:04:37,600
So the types of grasses, warm and cold season and geographical location is a determining factor.

32
00:04:37,600 --> 00:04:46,600
And when you should mow and how short you should mow.

33
00:04:47,600 --> 00:04:53,600
Now, when I started my business, I had some clients that were used to mowing their own property.

34
00:04:53,600 --> 00:05:06,600
And there was a few that would drop their mowing deck down to the ground and mow as short as they could.

35
00:05:07,600 --> 00:05:14,600
Because they thought if I mow it short, I won't have to mow as often.

36
00:05:14,600 --> 00:05:31,600
But what they found out because they mowed it short in the heat of summer in July and August when the heat is unbearable,

37
00:05:31,600 --> 00:05:43,600
it burns their property and it burns their grass and it turns brown.

38
00:05:44,600 --> 00:05:51,600
And they found they had more weeds.

39
00:05:51,600 --> 00:06:01,600
And when I started mowing for them, they would say, oh, the property looks great for three or four days.

40
00:06:02,600 --> 00:06:04,600
And then it looks like it needs to be mowed again.

41
00:06:05,600 --> 00:06:06,600
Can you cut it shorter?

42
00:06:07,600 --> 00:06:11,600
And my answer was no, I cannot.

43
00:06:11,600 --> 00:06:20,600
And I began to educate them as to why I did not want to cut their grass short.

44
00:06:21,600 --> 00:06:25,600
I explained to them the heat will burn it up.

45
00:06:26,600 --> 00:06:27,600
You'll have more weeds.

46
00:06:28,600 --> 00:06:32,600
Your root system will not be as healthy as it should be.

47
00:06:33,600 --> 00:06:39,600
It will not be thick and lush and green like you want it when you cut it short.

48
00:06:39,600 --> 00:06:48,600
And now 15 years later, they say my grass has never looked this good before.

49
00:06:50,600 --> 00:07:01,600
And it's just because I educated them on the optimal grass cutting height for my region.

50
00:07:01,600 --> 00:07:16,600
And now we maintain 100, 120 properties a week here in Newcastle, Indiana,

51
00:07:17,600 --> 00:07:22,600
and about 23 properties in Muncie, Indiana.

52
00:07:22,600 --> 00:07:37,600
And all of my customers will now tell you they understand why I mow the way I do,

53
00:07:38,600 --> 00:07:47,600
why I leave their grass three inches to four inches versus cutting it two inches.

54
00:07:47,600 --> 00:08:00,600
Now, in Florida, Georgia, maybe South Carolina, because it is a warm season state,

55
00:08:01,600 --> 00:08:05,600
the grasses are different than what they are in Indiana.

56
00:08:07,600 --> 00:08:13,600
A few years ago, my family and I were in Disney World in Orlando, Florida.

57
00:08:13,600 --> 00:08:19,600
And being me, I had to go out and check out the grass.

58
00:08:21,600 --> 00:08:24,600
And I was amazed at how short they mow.

59
00:08:26,600 --> 00:08:32,600
And then I really got to looking at the grass and I realized this is different

60
00:08:33,600 --> 00:08:34,600
than what we have in Indiana.

61
00:08:34,600 --> 00:08:44,600
And that's the reason why they cut it shorter in Florida than we do in Indiana.

62
00:08:45,600 --> 00:08:54,600
So there is no real blanket answer to the question, how short should you mow?

63
00:08:55,600 --> 00:08:57,600
Because it's different for everybody.

64
00:08:57,600 --> 00:09:04,600
What you need to do is find out what is the optimal grass cutting height for you

65
00:09:05,600 --> 00:09:13,600
in your location and the type of grass that you have.

66
00:09:13,600 --> 00:09:28,600
A good rule of thumb is never cut more than half of your lawn's total height.

67
00:09:29,600 --> 00:09:34,600
Cutting grass is similar to pruning plants.

68
00:09:34,600 --> 00:09:45,600
Cutting too much removes the leaf surface or the plant can photosynthesize.

69
00:09:46,600 --> 00:09:53,600
And if there's not enough leaf surface or if there's not enough blade on the grass,

70
00:09:53,600 --> 00:10:10,600
the root system will weaken because the plant or the grass uses up all of its stored nutrients trying to survive.

71
00:10:15,600 --> 00:10:17,600
So how high do you cut?

72
00:10:17,600 --> 00:10:26,600
For me in East Central Indiana, at the beginning of spring I cut a little shorter.

73
00:10:28,600 --> 00:10:36,600
That helps get rid of all of the winter debris in the grass, which will promote growth.

74
00:10:36,600 --> 00:10:46,600
After the first couple of mows, I bump my deck up to about three and a half inches.

75
00:10:47,600 --> 00:10:57,600
And I try to leave it on that setting all of summer into the fall.

76
00:10:57,600 --> 00:11:07,600
After I have all the leaves cleaned up, I'll drop my deck down to about three inches and go over it again.

77
00:11:08,600 --> 00:11:14,600
And that helps the grass survive the winter months.

78
00:11:14,600 --> 00:11:29,600
So there is no real clear answer on how short you should mow your grass.

79
00:11:30,600 --> 00:11:35,600
Because it's different for you and it's different for me.

80
00:11:35,600 --> 00:11:45,600
By our location and by the type of grass that we have now.

81
00:11:50,600 --> 00:11:55,600
I go by the rule one out of three.

82
00:11:55,600 --> 00:12:11,600
The one out of three rule means you never cut more than a third of the grass played every time you mow.

83
00:12:12,600 --> 00:12:19,600
Find out what is optimal for you and cut it at that height every time.

84
00:12:19,600 --> 00:12:28,600
Never cut more than a third of the blade when you mow.

85
00:12:29,600 --> 00:12:41,600
For example, if your lawn has grown to three inches, do not cut more than one inch off of it.

86
00:12:41,600 --> 00:12:47,600
Which is the third of the total height.

87
00:12:48,600 --> 00:13:01,600
Cutting only a third of the blade keeps the grass healthy without damaging its growth, without damaging the roots.

88
00:13:01,600 --> 00:13:13,600
And it will help the lawn survive the harsh heat of summer.

89
00:13:17,600 --> 00:13:22,600
Now I know some guys that mow a lot shorter than I do.

90
00:13:22,600 --> 00:13:37,600
And in July and August, they're not mowing a whole lot because they cut too short in April, May and June.

91
00:13:38,600 --> 00:13:46,600
So in the heat of summer, the grass is burned up and it's not growing and they're skipping.

92
00:13:46,600 --> 00:13:52,600
And they're checking it the next week to see if it needs mowing.

93
00:13:53,600 --> 00:14:06,600
Chances are they're probably skipping it that week too because they never did figure out what is the optimal grass cutting height for them and their clients.

94
00:14:06,600 --> 00:14:15,600
So never cut a third or more than a third of the blade.

95
00:14:18,600 --> 00:14:24,600
Grasses in Indiana typically are cool season grasses.

96
00:14:25,600 --> 00:14:30,600
Kentucky bluegrass, fine-fascue, perino, rye grasses.

97
00:14:30,600 --> 00:14:38,600
They're the most common grasses in Indiana.

98
00:14:42,600 --> 00:14:49,600
So I want to leave my grass three to four inches.

99
00:14:49,600 --> 00:14:59,600
That is the optimal grass cutting height for me and my geographical location.

100
00:15:01,600 --> 00:15:15,600
I want you to have beautiful green thick grass that when it is mowed, it stripes out like great American ballpark.

101
00:15:15,600 --> 00:15:29,600
But that can only happen if you find out for you and your business and your clients what is the optimal grass cutting height for you.

102
00:15:31,600 --> 00:15:34,600
I thank you for joining the lawn hustle today.

103
00:15:34,600 --> 00:15:45,600
Tune in next week for another exciting but educational podcast.