Mowing your lawn is a tedious but necessary chore to keep your lawn healthy and vibrant throughout the year. Knowing how to properly tend to your yard will keep you from making common homeowner mistakes resulting in dry and patchy grass. Even if you hire professional landscape services, you should be aware of these do's and dont's of correct lawn care.

Do:

Leave grass clippings alone.

Instead of bagging up grass clippings and throwing them in the garbage, choose to keep the extra plastic out of local landfills. If you leave the clippings where they are, they will decompose and act as a natural fertilizer for your lawn. Grass clippings improve aeration and water retention, and they help regulate the temperature of your soil, creating a prime environment for healthy lawn growth.

Use sharp mower blades.

Whether the mower is gas or electric-powered, it needs sharp blades to cleanly cut through your grass. They should be sharpened at least twice per season, but this varies depending on how much property you have. If you hire a weekly lawn care service, this shouldn't be a concern. A legitimate landscaping company regularly uses and sharpens their tools to increase productivity and leave professional results. 

Don't:

Mow in the middle of the day.

You may notice that most lawn care companies come by in the early morning, getting their work done at around 10:00 AM at the latest. This is to keep workers out of the sunlight and benefits the lawn itself. Mowing early gives grass time to recover before the sun is out in full force. If the grass is damaged and exposed to sunlight by midday mowing, it can lose water and nutrients, causing it to dry out and die. 

Cut wet grass.

If your lawn is soaked from heavy rain, you should wait before having your lawn mowed. These wet grass clippings can clog mowers and smother and kill patches of your lawn. If your grass is cut while it's wet, make sure the clumps of clippings are raked and spread out, so they don't leave dead grass spots behind.

Keep your yard looking lush and healthy with assistance from Jake's Lawn Care, a lawn maintenance and landscape contractor operating out of Fort Worth, TX.  For over 30 years, they have provided extensive lawn care, including seeding, mulching, cleanup, sprinkler installation, landscape remodeling, and other seasonal services. They install irrigation methods, including automatic, timed, and sensor-operated systems, to keep your lawn thriving throughout the year. Visit their website to learn more, or call (817) 292-2711 to request a free estimate.