13 Ways To Mow Your Lawn In Less Time
Last Updated on September 9, 2020 by Duncan
We all want beautiful lawns, but we don’t want to spend hours mowing.
Did you know there are tricks you can use to mow your lawn in less time and at the same time achieve maximum results? Here are these tricks:
Use the right lawnmower.
Whether renting or buying the lawnmower, use the right one. To make the right choice, pay attention to is the size of your yard.
If your lawn is less than 500 square feet, go for a reel mower. If your lawn is more than an acre, use a riding mower.
You are better off with gas-powered mowers than with corded electric mowers as they are a source of nuisance.
If you can afford a battery-powered mower, go for it. The machine doesn’t burn gasoline and doesn’t require oiling, which makes it easy to maintain and at the same time, conserve the environment.
Since there are no power cords to worry about, you complete your task in a short time.
Don’t mow when it’s wet.
As I mentioned in this article, you should not mow wet grass. This is because lawnmower blades don’t cut grass as well as they should so you waste a lot of time on your lawn.
To avoid spending hours on your lawn, wait until the grass dries up and you will accomplish your task quickly.
Make use of low-maintenance landscaping beds.
The purpose of landscaping beds is to reduce the amount of grass you have on your lawn. Some of the low-maintenance beds you can use include rock gardens and succulent beds.
Don’t know the best to go for? Consult your landscaping contractor to guide you on the best options.
Keep the lawnmower in top condition.
Having the right lawnmower isn’t enough—you also need to maintain it properly.
One of the things you should do is to inspect the lawnmower blades. If they are blunt, sharpen them. The beauty of it is you don’t have to hire a professional to help you. You can do it by yourself.
While you are at it, inspect the lawnmower moving parts and oil them.
Plant slow-growing grass varieties
Did you know there are plenty of slow-growing grass varieties in the market you can use to your advantage?
If you just bought a new property without grass, consult a local landscaping expert to recommend some of the best varieties to go for.
If transitioning from a traditional lawn, you may have to first kill the grass that you currently have then plant the new variety.
A slow-growing grass variety means it will be shorter when mowing time comes, so you mow the lawn fast.
Set the right mowing height
The mowing height you set depends on the look you want to create and the grass variety that you have. If you find the grass difficult to cut, adjust the height accordingly.
You can easily adjust the height by raising and lowering the mower wheels. Take a look on the side of the lawnmower and find the latches or switches that allow you to make the adjustments.
Get rid of clutter
Another highly effective trick you can use is to get rid of any clutter in your yard that can be a source of obstruction.
Use a rake to remove acorns, stones, bones, bottles, cans, tree branches, and other objects.
In addition to clutter slowing down your mowing, it also can be a safety issue as the objects lying on the ground can be discharged by the lawnmower at ultra-high speeds putting your life and that of others on the site at risk.
Go wild
If you don’t like the idea of landscaping beds, you can make use of wild plants. For example, you can plant wildflower meadow. The plant does not need any mowing, and at the same time fertilizes your lawn.
The area occupied by the flower means less mowing area hence you complete your mowing task fast.
Get a robot
Times have seriously changed. If you are up to it, you should get a robot that does the mowing for you while you sit back and watch things as they unfold.
While mowing robots are expensive, they cut fast and without your active involvement.
Most of the sophisticated robot mowers self-dock and have sensors that make it possible for you to set them and forget it while they do the work.
Mow regularly
When you mow your lawn more regularly, you have peace of mind the grass won’t be too long when cutting it the next time. For your lawn to remain green and healthy, you should mow it at least once every week.
If busy, you can get away with mowing just once every two weeks.
Do you live in extremely wet and warm areas? Mow your lawn more than once every week.
Mow in the correct pattern
You can spend a long time on your lawn when you mow in the wrong pattern. The best way of mowing is doing it in the back and forth pattern.
When mowing, move at a brisk pace. Avoid moving too slowly as the grass can easily catch and clog the mower blades.
If using a riding mower, mow in a back and forth pattern, moving in neat, even rows. When you come across an obstacle, do two laps around the obstacle.
You should note that you are more likely to get perfect results when you mow in half-lap passes. This is where the new pass overlaps the previous one by half the mower width.
When you mow in this direction you not only do the mowing fast, you also cut the grass you might have missed in the first place.
For best results always change the mowing pattern each mowing season. This is because mowing in the same pattern each time, triggers mower blades to form small ruts in your lawn.
Changing the mowing pattern also prevents mowing blades from beating the grass in the same direction all the times. Alternating the patterns has also been found to make the grass stand up straighter.
Hire a landscaping contractor
If you are too busy and don’t have time to mow your lawn, consider hiring a contractor to help you with the work. This way you don’t spend any time on your yard.
To get the most from the hired help, hire the most experienced as they will complete the work fast and execute it professionally.
Clean up after mowing
Once you are done with mowing, always get rid of the grass clipping using a lawn rake.
The only time you shouldn’t do this is when using a mulching mower. When using the mower, wait for the clippings to make their way through the grass and function like fertilizer.
When you leave the clipping on the lawn after mowing, you have a hard time cutting the next time as the clippings form thatch that prevents the mowing blades from mowing as well as they should.