November and December 2015 have broken most of the weather records we probably didn’t want breaking for our lawns and gardens, warmest, wettest, windiest, least sun, most consecutive days of rainfall, the list is endless. But even more widespread is the water logging that has affected lawns – particularly those on heavy, clay soils – and naturally wet soil.
Due to the mild weather grass is still growing which means it may need cutting. It’s difficult to mow wet grass at the best of times but if you leave it until spring it’ll be even longer and therefore harder. Make life easier for yourself this Spring:
- Put the mower on the highest setting. This will help especially on clay soils
- Longer grass will grow more slowly
- The grass will use more energy growing for roots
- The extra leaf will aid in photosynthesis improving health and disease resistance
- When you mow you’ll mow higher up the leaf where it is drier
- Leave the cylinder mower in the shed, use a rotary
- The mower will ride on a cushion of grass with fewer muddy tracks
Mowing wet grass – top tips
Dry off the lawn first; use a length of hose and drag or drag a brush this will disperse any water down into the soil.
Mow in the afternoon or evening; choose a dry day which gives the grass leaves a chance to dry.
Choose a windy day; it will assist in drying the lawn.
Clean the mower; grass left from a previous cuts attracts wet grass like a magnet.
A sharp mower is even better.
A rotary mower will be better than a cylinder mower.
If your lawn is thinning?
Some lawns, particularly those with clay soil, poor drainage and/or shady are beginning to thin quite alarmingly. Basically the roots are so saturated the grass is drowning.
What do you do?
Don’t panic and don’t start digging it up or installing drainage. Just leave it alone until spring when the weather starts to warm.
As conditions improve, consider over seeding with new grass seed. This will help rejuvenate your lawn. We recommend Green Velvet Grass Seed.