By following the one-third rule, you'll reduce stress on your grass and promote lateral growth for a lush, green lawn. And as an added bonus, you can reduce watering and fertilizing your lawn by recycling the grass clippings. "Grasscycling" saves time and money, and helps the environment.
Produced by the Department of Communications at Kansas State University. For more information, visit our website at:http://www.kansasgreenyards.org
To maintain good healthy grass, you need to mow it at the right height, and the right frequency. The rule that helps us figure that out is called the one-third rule, which means never remove more than one-third of the leaf tissue at any one time that you’re mowing.
So, if you’re mowing Kentucky bluegrass at two inches high, for example, you don’t want to let it grow any higher than three inches before you mow it. That does several things. It helps the clipping be small enough so that they can be dispersed across the yard, and it helps to promote the health of the plant as well.
So, the one-third rule is a guideline. There may be occasions where you’ll go on vacation, or it may be raining and you can’t mow your yard frequently enough. The grass can then get too tall. So, what do you do? You can do one of several things. You can raise your lawnmower height as high as possible. Mow it at the highest height, and then come back later that same day, or the next day with the mower deck at a lower height. Mow it again and keep the clippings on the yard, and spread them out across the yard. Or, you can collect those clippings, bag them, and take them to the nearest compost facility.
By following the one-third rule, you’re responding to how fast the grass grows. When the grass is growing very rapidly in the springtime, you’ll need to mow more often. And when the grass growth slows down in the summertime, you won’t have to mow as frequently.
It’s not necessary to bag your clippings. You can recycle them and put them back in your yard. The clippings contain nutrients and moisture, and by returning those clippings back to the yard, you’re actually recycling those nutrients and moisture back into the yard. If someone always bags their yard, that person will have to fertilize their yard more often than someone who is returning their clippings back to the yard.
By following the one-third rule, it also causes us to mow frequently enough so that it stimulates lateral growth. We want the grass to spend it’s time and energy growing across the yard rather than growing up in the air. By growing laterally across the yard, it helps the yard to be thick and dense. This helps prevent weeds and gives you a thick, healthy yard.
This feature story prepared with Rodney St.John, former Kansas State University Research and Extension Turfgrass Specialist. For more information, visit your local county extension office or visit our website at KansasGreenYards.org.
FAQs
This rule is necessary because if you remove more than 1/3 of your grass blades while mowing, it could potentially kill your grass and allow weeds to grow too easily. This rule is very important for the health of your grass, so make sure that your lawn maintenance company is abiding by it.
What is the 1/3 rule for mowing? ›
To maintain good healthy grass, you need to mow it at the right height, and the right frequency. The rule that helps us figure that out is called the one-third rule, which means never remove more than one-third of the leaf tissue at any one time that you're mowing.
What is the 1 3 rule? ›
The 1/3 rule makes the most sense for relatively high cut turf found in golf course roughs, sports fields and home lawns. Applying the rule, you should never let a rough maintained at 2 inches grow higher than 3 inches before mowing.
What is the general rule of thumb for mowing? ›
A general rule of thumb is not to remove more than one-third of the total leaf surface when mowing your lawn. This may require mowing every four to five days during rapid growth in the spring.
What happens when you mow more than 1/3? ›
You remove part of the surface area devoted to manufacturing food, causing the grass stress. When you cut too much of the grass leaves' length, the remaining surface area of the leaves is no longer enough to support the remaining lawn with sufficient food and energy.
What does 3 in 1 lawn mower mean? ›
What does the term 3-N-1 mower mean? The term "3-N-1" refers to the ability of the mower to cut and process grass in three different ways: Freely discharge grass through the opening in the deck. Mulch the grass by closing off the discharge opening. Bag the grass for disposal.
What is the rule of 1 3rds? ›
The rule of thirds is a composition guideline that places your subject in the left or right third of an image, leaving the other two thirds more open.
What is the 1 3 time rule? ›
The 1/3 — 2/3 Rule
The rule states that leaders should spend no more than 1/3 of the time allocated for a mission or project on the planning phase. The other 2/3 is devoted to individuals and teams working in their strongest areas. Leaders work with tight schedules and complex situations.
What is the 1 rule of three? ›
The rule of three is a writing principle that suggests that a trio of entities such as events or characters is more humorous, satisfying, or effective than other numbers.
What not to do when mulching? ›
DON'T
- Expect all mulch to stop weeds. Weeds are tough to beat. ...
- Layer mulch too deep. Too deep a layer prevents essential oxygen from reaching the soil, causing root suffocation. ...
- Add fresh mulch on top of old mulch without loosening it up first.
If you're getting ready to install mulch in your landscape beds, you are likely wondering if you need to first remove the old mulch. Well, the simple answer is no! It's not necessary to remove the old mulch from your landscape beds because it's made up of organic material, and it will decompose over time.
What is the no dig method of mulching? ›
Create or extend existing beds by smothering grass and/or weeds with a double layer of cardboard, weighted down with mulch. Weight the cardboard down by applying a thick mulch (10-15cm of organic matter) on top. If you want to plant up the bed straight away, wet the cardboard before adding the mulch on top.
What is the mow 1 3 rule? ›
The 1/3 rule is simple, you should never cut more than 1/3 of your grass blade off at once. Cutting more than 1/3 of the grass blade will shock the turf and cause the root structure to become shallow which will lead to thinner grass and more weeds.
What time is it rude to mow a lawn? ›
Bad: Evening mowing (6 p.m. to 8 p.m.)
Generally, anytime after 6 p.m. is too late to be cutting your grass.
What is the ideal time to mow the lawn? ›
However, most professional gardeners would agree that between 8 AM and 10 AM is the best time of day to cut your grass. The reason for that is that lawns need time to heal before evening. Grass needs the benefit of the day to dry and heal before dusk settles.
What time should you not mow? ›
However, be mindful that mowing too close to nightfall (between 6 and 8 p.m.) will not give your grass enough time to recover, making your lawn more susceptible to fungus and turf disease. It's recommended to avoid cutting your grass in the early morning and midday.
What is the easiest mowing pattern? ›
Striping Patterns
It's as simple as mowing across the lawn, turning 180 degrees, then mowing in the opposite direction with a slight overlap of the first pass. If you continue this pattern in alternating directions until you finish up, you'll have grass bent in two directions for light and dark patches.
Why not cut more than 1/3 grass? ›
The 1/3 rule is simple, you should never cut more than 1/3 of your grass blade off at once. Cutting more than 1/3 of the grass blade will shock the turf and cause the root structure to become shallow which will lead to thinner grass and more weeds.
What is the 150 rule for lawns? ›
A good rule of thumb is the “150 Rule,” meaning that for warm-season grasses to grow well, the sum of the high and low temperatures for the day must reach 150 or greater.
