Dad's advice for me from day one. Just mow it, water it, and feed it. He was right...again. Turns out he knows what he's talkin about. Especially if you say so too. I actually touched on this very thing in a video a couple weeks ago. Happy to hear it reinforced!
Awesome video, John! You and the LCN have inspired me to cut my lawn 2x per week and I just mowed last night at 10pm, after putting the kids to bed. Will mow again over the weekend. Using a reel mower that I bought a couple of weeks ago and trying to maintain my St Augustine grass at a 2.5 inch cut. Just need to continue being consistent with the 2x per week mow and not let life get in the way. Thanks again!
I can't agree with you highly enough that mowing often is the best single cultural practice that you can do to improve the condition of your lawn. My back yard was a mess when I started improving my lawn in 2017, and with a little N and frequent mowing, I reduced the weed count drastically, and when I learned about pre emergents, it was a game changer.
I was doing that earlier this Spring. Mowing every few days. It did make a big difference. I am still mowing 2 times a week. Hope to keep it up for the rest of the season.
@@Lawncology What about when its hot and you don't have irrigation. Should you put mowing off to once a week, or still keep up with a regular schedule. I have a large 3 acre lawn and can't irrigate it. I normally mow every 3 days in the spring, but once every 5-6 days once the heats comes.
MC B0B you’ll have a hard time mowing often or really have the need to with cool season turf on a non irrigated summer lawn. I would stick with what you’re doing. Likely the best option.
I’m planning on planting new grass seed next weekend, elite kbg varieties designed for short cut height. Should I ignore the traditional advice of waiting for it to grow super tall before I mow for the first time if I want to train it to be cut at an inch going forward? Maybe once it hits 1.5” only then I take 1/2 inch off right away instead of waiting for it to grow to 3 or 4 inches like most people say you should do with fresh baby grass? Will that do more harm that good or should I just hack it down right away first mowing?
+DIY Dad so here’s what I would say. Maturity is at 45-60 days post emergence but you can see how the plant is standing and decide if the weight of the mower will break any crowns if not, keep it low and start it right!
Good video , one extra I would point out would be to change mowing direction on a regular basis , I mow my grass every day so I agree with all your points .
Michael Newton you are correct. It’s something I don’t think about much anymore because I mow Cross cuts so often and have no weight to my mower. It’s incapable of striping and doesn’t fold the turf. I absolutely agree with changing directions
Excited for this series, I’m struggling with a thinner area in my lawn but it gets mostly shade throughout the day, I was leaving it long thinking the plant needed more height to absorb more sunlight but I’m curious if I cut it maybe a little lower and more often if I could force some thickness
Great videos and I appreciate all your advice! Question, I keep the lawn long to get through the hot months. I have this "branching" going on with my Blue grass. How short do you think you need to cut to re-train the grass to single blades?
Great video as always, and I can't wait for more in the series. I'm in Austin Texas and just renovated with Yukon Bermuda seed. I'm 5 weeks after germination and things are going pretty well. I'm currently mowing twice per week (rotary with 2" being my lowest setting) and I have automatic underground irrigation. What's the best advice to thicken high performance Bermuda?
+Nigel Prentice got to get low. 3/4-1” cut height with periodic scalping. That’s going to be the best mow tip I can give you. As far as feeding, less food more often. Let it branch and crawl rather than getting stringy
@@Lawncology Awesome, thanks for the advice. And I'm incorporated more and more of your liquid products into my warm season plan. Just got some Air8 from GCI. Keep on keeping on my friend! And I gotta say I really like how you incorporate organic materials (humic, kelp, seaweed) into most (if not all) of your products. I'm trying to stay as non-toxic as possible and your stuff seems to always feed the soil on top of whatever else the product's intent is. Keep it up!
I live in Austin TX too!! These people don't know what its like to mow in the heat we experience daily. I have around 6,500 sq ft of lawn and my house is elevated. Very challenging!!
suaverprc That’s right. 107 F today! But at the same time, I don’t envy their frigid winters and all the home ownership and landscaping work that comes with ice, snow, and freezing temps!
suaverprc yeah, I grew up in Houston baking and sweating my ass off cutting st Augustine 2x a week... I know about that damn Texas heat. Your air at least moves a little 😂😂
+Thomas Dreas only when needed. I run the sprinklers when I start to see fading. During the hottest driest time I watered deeply once a week and supplementally 2x.
John, I've been mowing my KBG at 3.75" thinking the taller blades will shade the turf during the hotter months. So your short grass that is so thick by frequent mowing is accomplishing the same shading as a taller turf. If I were to drop down to 3.25' or2.75" and mow often and watering when needed would that be a good option verses mowing tall? Right now I have my worst rust issue ever. I do like the look of KBG when I mow at 2.75' or a little taller. Just mowing short in the summer is the oppositewhat has been preached for years.
Thomas Dreas it’s likely your turf isn’t drying all the way on the blades those encouraging a fungus. Mow it out and yes, frequency will play the biggest roll in lateral branching and soil shading. If you click over to Ryan Knorrs channel and look at his backyard, he’s starting to bring it down and it uncovered issues that he knew was lurking beneath the taller grass. It’s pretty intersting
Hi John, I have a question that I have been pondering all season. I'm in the lawn care business. There are a couple lawns we mow that have a thick base to them whereas other lawns don't have such a thick base. I was wondering if the mowing height has anything to do with this. One of the lawns is a new client and he always cut his lawn at 4 inches and has me cutting at the same height. The lawns I'm comparing are all pretty much healthy. I'm in the northeast. Another great video!
+Tony Falcone likely yes. If it grows fast and gets cut where you’re taking more than 1.5-2” off every time, it will build up a thick mat of thatchy material that takes for ever to break down
@@Lawncology one of the lawns is power raked every year, so no thatch built up on this one. But the new client looks like he has thatch built up and could use d-thatch.
I'm afraid to cut mine short. Mine her in Michigan looks ok at 3" but does lay down. I'm afraid if I cut it down little at a time to maybe 2" the 85-90 days will hurt it. Any ideas? I have an old school lawn. Little bit of everything I think lol. Nice grass and beautiful dog man
So is it better to cut KBG to 3.5 inches to help hold water and also grow deeper roots or is it better to cut it at one inch so it thickens and is more dense? I've heard both and don't know what to believe
Common Bermuda, blazing heat and too many high/low spots in the front lawn. I have to cut 2 3/4 this time of year. Looks great. Would like to go lower but just can't. Side yard was thin but pretty level. So a month ago decided to go at around 1 3/8. It is spreading amazingly well. And by the end of the season I think it is what I wish the front could be.
This is exactly what I needed. Trying to get my 4” KBG down to 3” or even 2 1/2 for my aerate and over seeding this fall. When would be the go time for that here in Salt Lake City?
+Jesus Quiles it’s still hot but if you take it down one notch, wait a couple Days and cut again at the same height, wait a couple and go down a notch, you can get there in two weeks easily
Can't believe how well your manual lawn mower cut that much off with that much ease in the last video. My Fiskars gets bogged down with my Zeon Zyosia even when I raise it to 2 and 1/2 height. Great exercise though but makes cutting religiously kind of tough now that my grass is growing in thick. I do like the "greeness" of my manual mower but need more power. Don't think an electric Swordman is in the budget anytime soon; so, will have to look at the electric rotaries.
@@JD-ce4so I never sharpened but this is a relatively new mower. Just got it a few months ago but started actually cutting 1-2 times a week in the last 3 months now that my lawn has grown in. The 1st section which is the thickest gives me the most issues. The newer sections cuts like butter. I'm guessing a good sharpening may help though? How often do you sharpen/grind?
Does elevation effect the ability/speed to mulch? I am at 3000ft in California and find clippings do not break down. They are very small and not clumped together but if I dig down to the soil I find they are not breaking down.
+Bryan Robles that will be due to soil activity mainly. Microbes sound like they’re not doing the job they are intended to do. What all do you feed the lawn as far as fertilizer? What height is the turf? And what type?
Hey John, I am a new subscriber to your channel. Gotta say I love watching your video content. I am learning a lot and find it very interesting as well. Keeping it simple seems to work well and I appreciate your efforts to the group. I am from New Hampshire and mowing my grass at 3 inches but now you have me wondering about maybe trying to cut a small section shorter to see how it does. Thanks for the great info, much appreciated.
I have Tall fescue. Some blades are very thick and some very thin. I know crowding determines the thickness of the blades but does letting it get tall thicken the blades more or does cutting it often? The thicker blades look better to me. Why are some really thick. The ones that are thick are usually on the edge of the lawn.
Hi John, How would you address Dollar spot? we get tons and tons of rain here in Pittsburgh Pa all spring and summer, till just recently, I def keep up w my N and organics and mow @ 4inches I just don't know how to get rid of it from coming every summer, I am doing everything on my end correct! Thanks ;)
@@Lawncology Thanks, I definitely do put down a good amount of N late spring and spoon feedings through out, I personally think my KGB is just so thick it can't breathe and this happens it's pretty bad right now, super discouraged, since I did everything right, even core aerated last fall
I took my TTTF low this weekend getting ready for overseeing in the fall. I'm in socal and we are in triple digits so it stressed it out in certain areas. My plan was to start lowing it slowly from 4 inches over the next month so it would be be ok being short. My plan failed lol. I took too much off. I think I'm just going to wait until I seed to do lower it.
John, I'm just curious - You shoot all your recent videoes on that same patch of grass. Behind the patch is a hilly, rocky dirt/natural grass area. Does the rest of your property look like this grassy area or the rocky dirt/natural grass area? Another question - I follow what you are saying about mowing frequently, but if you are cutting really low, like 1/2" or less, aren't also cutting any possible weeds that short so you wouldn't be able to notice weeds growing in your yard, but they are there?
Ben Harrison great questions. My whole property is high desert rough terrain. Rocky, grey crap that is as hard as the old west. The front of the property is a steep hill that’s full of trees and bark mulch. It’s like a 30 degree slope. Weeds (which so far I still don’t have any) will try for any place with space but because I’ve got more lower lateral growth, they can’t get through
So if I want to take my lawn down short from 4” down as low as I can get it. How do I take it down slowly? Like one notch lower every week if I have good growth going? Not looking for a end all be all, just a rule of thumb for beginning to bring it down low.
New to the grass game. I’m addicted to it and believe me with my income it’s very hard to not spend every dime to have a golf course growing in back of my house. But I appreciate the videos. That’s bluegrass?
Great Vid John! Your Wabbit patch over in the corner is looking way way better! Are you keeping them away now or is the grass thick enough now that you cannot see their damage! Thanks for all the great content! Chad Upstate NY
Chad Fleming glad you noticed! So about a week ago we were having a cornhole game and I noticed some fresh rabbit crap in the lawn. I brought the insanity sauce out for only the second time this year and they Haven’t been back. The turf has been able to grow normally since the varmints have gone
I just sent my Yard Machine rotary mower to another home switching up to an American push reel mower for my fescue lawn. The Interweb gurus say this type of grass/lawn should be left tall around 3" most of the time to promote its health. Most available American reel mowers have a max blade height of .5 to 1.75" for cutting options. Does it really matter since I'm going to make the commitment to mow every week until the dormant season of winter? Why do I care? Because I'm beginning to put some serious time into my lawn now and I don't want to change things up over and over again regarding the 5 golden rules made to maintain a healthy lawn. Ha, and then I watched long enough to see you push that reel mower.
yeah, all spring I was mowing often(every other day or 3rd) and as short as my mower would go on my KBG, then this summer I worked it up, 2nd notch, next 3rd, 4th height, and last at the 5th setting and was only mowing once a week; but I just did not like how it looked and I think I got more weeds ...now I'm already back down to the 3rd setting height; taking it slow to get there and next week going one notch lower to 2nd setting plus mowing more often for about two more weeks till I drop down to the lowest height again(about 1") - but my question is: did mowing taller in the summer *really* help with water retention, heat stress, prohibit weeds, promote more root development, or anything at all? or is that just a myth
+Benjamin T. Minkler Great question about length. I have always stayed in the 3.5” range. Years of longer cut height. This is the first year short. As far as I’m seeing I have no difference in amount of water, weeds are still nonexistent, and roots haven’t suffered. I do think that if you feed heavy and cut short you’re likely to shorten roots and have more disease issues
Is keeping my cool season turf at 2" with a rotary fine as long as I'm keeping up with mowing and feeding? When I got into lawn care, I followed the theory of mowing super tall for less heat stress etc, but I've seen a lot of short cut cool lawns now to think maybe the tall cut theory has been debunked?
This is my first season I haven’t had to use chemicals on my lawn. I thought it was due to the gallons of humic I sprayed, but maybe it’s the mowing frequency.
+Midnight Monoculture I haven’t gone below half inch but I will be seeding a dwarf bluegrass variety in this fall to make it able to go shorter easier. I am planning on borrowing a greens mower at the end of the month and seeing if this grass will do 1/4”
What about non-irrigated cool-season lawns? If I normally cut at 4", isn't it fine to let it go a week or two so it holds more water in the leaf blade when it is too hot (over 90), compared to mowing every couple days at 4" and stressing it from mowing when it is too hot out? It seems to keep it green longer and then it's quicker to recover when I finally cut it when it cools down.
+Eavee I think that’s totally fine if it isnt growing much because you won’t be cutting more than 30% off at that length. More of the issue is when turf is cut way short after long growth. You can train it to stay low and hold water even at the short lengths, but TTTF look and does better longer anyhow, I wouldn’t take that turf low
Nah! Your unique style is what differentiates you from the others. It is clear that you put your focus into authenticity, from your one shot talks to the way you don’t oversell your products. It is refreshing to see the “real” John Perry. Keep doing what you are doing! Thanks for the reply.
+Steven Luedtke meh. I’d rather just occasionally have longer grass to cut. I’ll have someone cut it for me a couple times while I’m gone in this next trip
A year late to this video, but you might want to have Hercy's ears checked, John. The way he's slinging his head and rubbing his ears on the ground makes me think he might have an ear infection.
@@brianm7402 I beg to differ. It is a perfect solution for somebody with a busy job. I have 14,000 sq feet lawn that has never been this healthy since I bought the automower. It cuts daily at night and I get to enjoy the garden during the day. (I do use most of the Next products. ) My riding mower sits in the garage collecting dust. It is hard to imagine going back to a riding mower.
I don’t know that I need one, I’m ok with letting it grow while I’m away but I do have the option of having my house sitter cut it. It will likely get cut once while I’m away
@@Lawncology I couldn't regularly mow my lawn. Usually it is once a week and then I had to cut more than 1/3 of the height. The lawn looked stressed. Robot mower solves this issue. Like you said the lawn likes regular mowing and it is thicker and lush.
Dad's advice for me from day one. Just mow it, water it, and feed it. He was right...again. Turns out he knows what he's talkin about. Especially if you say so too. I actually touched on this very thing in a video a couple weeks ago. Happy to hear it reinforced!
+Budget Lawns great wisdom by dad for sure
Awesome video, John! You and the LCN have inspired me to cut my lawn 2x per week and I just mowed last night at 10pm, after putting the kids to bed. Will mow again over the weekend. Using a reel mower that I bought a couple of weeks ago and trying to maintain my St Augustine grass at a 2.5 inch cut. Just need to continue being consistent with the 2x per week mow and not let life get in the way. Thanks again!
For sure with that st aug. have to stay on top of it!!!
First Ginja!!!
+Pest and Lawn Ginja and proud of it bro!!!
First Ginja with a big smile on his face.😁
I can't agree with you highly enough that mowing often is the best single cultural practice that you can do to improve the condition of your lawn. My back yard was a mess when I started improving my lawn in 2017, and with a little N and frequent mowing, I reduced the weed count drastically, and when I learned about pre emergents, it was a game changer.
Thank You John! I love that everyone is reiterating that we can have a short lawn without killing it or having a weed issues.
Dan Blubaugh it’s working!
Your lawn is looking great, and is a great example of how much you can push a lawn with low inputs and good cultural practices.
+Jon Fokken it only takes work 😁
I was doing that earlier this Spring. Mowing every few days. It did make a big difference. I am still mowing 2 times a week. Hope to keep it up for the rest of the season.
+Jason G makes a huge difference over all and why not get out and walk more often you know? Great excercize and zen like repetition
@@Lawncology Yes. I definitely enjoy walking the lawn. Unless it is SUPER hot.
@@Lawncology What about when its hot and you don't have irrigation. Should you put mowing off to once a week, or still keep up with a regular schedule. I have a large 3 acre lawn and can't irrigate it. I normally mow every 3 days in the spring, but once every 5-6 days once the heats comes.
MC B0B you’ll have a hard time mowing often or really have the need to with cool season turf on a non irrigated summer lawn. I would stick with what you’re doing. Likely the best option.
I’m planning on planting new grass seed next weekend, elite kbg varieties designed for short cut height. Should I ignore the traditional advice of waiting for it to grow super tall before I mow for the first time if I want to train it to be cut at an inch going forward? Maybe once it hits 1.5” only then I take 1/2 inch off right away instead of waiting for it to grow to 3 or 4 inches like most people say you should do with fresh baby grass? Will that do more harm that good or should I just hack it down right away first mowing?
+DIY Dad so here’s what I would say. Maturity is at 45-60 days post emergence but you can see how the plant is standing and decide if the weight of the mower will break any crowns if not, keep it low and start it right!
Lawncology sounds good, I’ll keep a close eye on it and see how it goes thanks!
Thats a good looking lawn 👌
Good video , one extra I would point out would be to change mowing direction on a regular basis , I mow my grass every day so I agree with all your points .
Michael Newton you are correct. It’s something I don’t think about much anymore because I mow Cross cuts so often and have no weight to my mower. It’s incapable of striping and doesn’t fold the turf. I absolutely agree with changing directions
Excited for this series, I’m struggling with a thinner area in my lawn but it gets mostly shade throughout the day, I was leaving it long thinking the plant needed more height to absorb more sunlight but I’m curious if I cut it maybe a little lower and more often if I could force some thickness
More info forthcoming! And yes, the grass will thicken the shorter you cut and then you can let it grow up into a forest of thickness
Great videos and I appreciate all your advice! Question, I keep the lawn long to get through the hot months. I have this "branching" going on with my Blue grass. How short do you think you need to cut to re-train the grass to single blades?
Great video as always, and I can't wait for more in the series. I'm in Austin Texas and just renovated with Yukon Bermuda seed. I'm 5 weeks after germination and things are going pretty well. I'm currently mowing twice per week (rotary with 2" being my lowest setting) and I have automatic underground irrigation. What's the best advice to thicken high performance Bermuda?
+Nigel Prentice got to get low. 3/4-1” cut height with periodic scalping. That’s going to be the best mow tip I can give you. As far as feeding, less food more often. Let it branch and crawl rather than getting stringy
@@Lawncology Awesome, thanks for the advice. And I'm incorporated more and more of your liquid products into my warm season plan. Just got some Air8 from GCI. Keep on keeping on my friend! And I gotta say I really like how you incorporate organic materials (humic, kelp, seaweed) into most (if not all) of your products. I'm trying to stay as non-toxic as possible and your stuff seems to always feed the soil on top of whatever else the product's intent is. Keep it up!
I live in Austin TX too!! These people don't know what its like to mow in the heat we experience daily. I have around 6,500 sq ft of lawn and my house is elevated. Very challenging!!
suaverprc That’s right. 107 F today! But at the same time, I don’t envy their frigid winters and all the home ownership and landscaping work that comes with ice, snow, and freezing temps!
suaverprc yeah, I grew up in Houston baking and sweating my ass off cutting st Augustine 2x a week... I know about that damn Texas heat. Your air at least moves a little 😂😂
Good video on mowing. How often is your lawn irrigated? Looks great.
+Thomas Dreas only when needed. I run the sprinklers when I start to see fading. During the hottest driest time I watered deeply once a week and supplementally 2x.
How do I get my hands on a lawncology shirt???
The Lawn Whisperer I’ll ha e them available in the store before long
Thanks John! I look forward to your videos!
richv70 thank you for watching!!
John, I've been mowing my KBG at 3.75" thinking the taller blades will shade the turf during the hotter months. So your short grass that is so thick by frequent mowing is accomplishing the same shading as a taller turf. If I were to drop down to 3.25' or2.75" and mow often and watering when needed would that be a good option verses mowing tall? Right now I have my worst rust issue ever. I do like the look of KBG when I mow at 2.75' or a little taller. Just mowing short in the summer is the oppositewhat has been preached for years.
Thomas Dreas it’s likely your turf isn’t drying all the way on the blades those encouraging a fungus. Mow it out and yes, frequency will play the biggest roll in lateral branching and soil shading. If you click over to Ryan Knorrs channel and look at his backyard, he’s starting to bring it down and it uncovered issues that he knew was lurking beneath the taller grass. It’s pretty intersting
Bag clippings if weeds are present? Or still just leave clippings? I have 1 in hybrid Bermuda cut with a reel mower. I cut almost every 2 to 3 days
Hi John, I have a question that I have been pondering all season. I'm in the lawn care business. There are a couple lawns we mow that have a thick base to them whereas other lawns don't have such a thick base. I was wondering if the mowing height has anything to do with this. One of the lawns is a new client and he always cut his lawn at 4 inches and has me cutting at the same height. The lawns I'm comparing are all pretty much healthy. I'm in the northeast.
Another great video!
+Tony Falcone likely yes. If it grows fast and gets cut where you’re taking more than 1.5-2” off every time, it will build up a thick mat of thatchy material that takes for ever to break down
@@Lawncology one of the lawns is power raked every year, so no thatch built up on this one. But the new client looks like he has thatch built up and could use d-thatch.
I'm afraid to cut mine short. Mine her in Michigan looks ok at 3" but does lay down. I'm afraid if I cut it down little at a time to maybe 2" the 85-90 days will hurt it. Any ideas? I have an old school lawn. Little bit of everything I think lol. Nice grass and beautiful dog man
Kevin Scott thanks Kevin, you can get it down a little but go slow. Fall is almost here and you’ll have less stress if you wait a few weeks to start.
So is it better to cut KBG to 3.5 inches to help hold water and also grow deeper roots or is it better to cut it at one inch so it thickens and is more dense? I've heard both and don't know what to believe
Common Bermuda, blazing heat and too many high/low spots in the front lawn. I have to cut 2 3/4 this time of year. Looks great. Would like to go lower but just can't. Side yard was thin but pretty level. So a month ago decided to go at around 1 3/8. It is spreading amazingly well. And by the end of the season I think it is what I wish the front could be.
Very nice. If you scalp that a couple times a year it will go low, lateral and think.
This is exactly what I needed. Trying to get my 4” KBG down to 3” or even 2 1/2 for my aerate and over seeding this fall. When would be the go time for that here in Salt Lake City?
+Jesus Quiles it’s still hot but if you take it down one notch, wait a couple
Days and cut again at the same height, wait a couple and go down a notch, you can get there in two weeks easily
Lawncology I will do exactly that, should I keep mulching or start bagging?
Your dog seems to really enjoy the lawn 😀
Brian M oh yes. It’s the kids and dogs play zone... I’m just the hired hand
Great video I love the way that you're teaching explain things
Austin Schultz thanks Austin!
Cute dog John.. reminds me of an old pet of mine. Lawn looking mint..
+Matthew Parker thanks Matt! Herk will be 12 in a couple months. Hard to believe I had him that long
Can't believe how well your manual lawn mower cut that much off with that much ease in the last video. My Fiskars gets bogged down with my Zeon Zyosia even when I raise it to 2 and 1/2 height. Great exercise though but makes cutting religiously kind of tough now that my grass is growing in thick. I do like the "greeness" of my manual mower but need more power. Don't think an electric Swordman is in the budget anytime soon; so, will have to look at the electric rotaries.
Len Y when was the last time you back lapped or had the reel given a new grind?
+Len Y it cruises through very easily, I like this mower a lot. Cuts way better than my last one and is as light as a feather
@@JD-ce4so I never sharpened but this is a relatively new mower. Just got it a few months ago but started actually cutting 1-2 times a week in the last 3 months now that my lawn has grown in. The 1st section which is the thickest gives me the most issues. The newer sections cuts like butter.
I'm guessing a good sharpening may help though? How often do you sharpen/grind?
thinair great states 18”
Does elevation effect the ability/speed to mulch? I am at 3000ft in California and find clippings do not break down. They are very small and not clumped together but if I dig down to the soil I find they are not breaking down.
+Bryan Robles that will be due to soil activity mainly. Microbes sound like they’re not doing the job they are intended to do. What all do you feed the lawn as far as fertilizer? What height is the turf? And what type?
Great advice & love the video and thank you !!!
Thank you for watching!
Hey John, I am a new subscriber to your channel. Gotta say I love watching your video content. I am learning a lot and find it very interesting as well. Keeping it simple seems to work well and I appreciate your efforts to the group. I am from New Hampshire and mowing my grass at 3 inches but now you have me wondering about maybe trying to cut a small section shorter to see how it does. Thanks for the great info, much appreciated.
Scott Tarrant thank you so much for watching and if you do cut short and don’t like it, you’re in luck, it grows back 😁
I have Tall fescue. Some blades are very thick and some very thin. I know crowding determines the thickness of the blades but does letting it get tall thicken the blades more or does cutting it often? The thicker blades look better to me. Why are some really thick. The ones that are thick are usually on the edge of the lawn.
I like his grass and now I just see his nice watch as well ...
Another awesome video and great info
Hi John, How would you address Dollar spot? we get tons and tons of rain here in Pittsburgh Pa all spring and summer, till just recently, I def keep up w my N and organics and mow @ 4inches I just don't know how to get rid of it from coming every summer, I am doing everything on my end correct! Thanks ;)
+Prtygrl44 you may need to cut a little shorter when that happens and make sure you’ve got enough N going down prior to dollar spot season
@@Lawncology Thanks, I definitely do put down a good amount of N late spring and spoon feedings through out, I personally think my KGB is just so thick it can't breathe and this happens it's pretty bad right now, super discouraged, since I did everything right, even core aerated last fall
Love the dogs cameo in the vid!
+David Moriarty he’s a primadonna 😂😂
Lawncology lol
I took my TTTF low this weekend getting ready for overseeing in the fall. I'm in socal and we are in triple digits so it stressed it out in certain areas. My plan was to start lowing it slowly from 4 inches over the next month so it would be be ok being short. My plan failed lol. I took too much off. I think I'm just going to wait until I seed to do lower it.
Ben H if you’re already down there, keep it there. Maybe it will look bad for a little bit, but you’re there now and it will retrain.
@@Lawncology ok. I guess I'm mowing tonight lol.
John, I'm just curious - You shoot all your recent videoes on that same patch of grass. Behind the patch is a hilly, rocky dirt/natural grass area. Does the rest of your property look like this grassy area or the rocky dirt/natural grass area?
Another question - I follow what you are saying about mowing frequently, but if you are cutting really low, like 1/2" or less, aren't also cutting any possible weeds that short so you wouldn't be able to notice weeds growing in your yard, but they are there?
Ben Harrison great questions. My whole property is high desert rough terrain. Rocky, grey crap that is as hard as the old west. The front of the property is a steep hill that’s full of trees and bark mulch. It’s like a 30 degree slope.
Weeds (which so far I still don’t have any) will try for any place with space but because I’ve got more lower lateral growth, they can’t get through
So if I want to take my lawn down short from 4” down as low as I can get it. How do I take it down slowly? Like one notch lower every week if I have good growth going? Not looking for a end all be all, just a rule of thumb for beginning to bring it down low.
New to the grass game. I’m addicted to it and believe me with my income it’s very hard to not spend every dime to have a golf course growing in back of my house. But I appreciate the videos. That’s bluegrass?
+kate wills that’s bluegrass and you can do it inexpesivley. I will be doing a project lawn with this in mind
Can you mod your manual reel mower with a striping kit?
e1234 sure
Great Vid John! Your Wabbit patch over in the corner is looking way way better! Are you keeping them away now or is the grass thick enough now that you cannot see their damage! Thanks for all the great content! Chad Upstate NY
Chad Fleming glad you noticed! So about a week ago we were having a cornhole game and I noticed some fresh rabbit crap in the lawn. I brought the insanity sauce out for only the second time this year and they Haven’t been back. The turf has been able to grow normally since the varmints have gone
I just sent my Yard Machine rotary mower to another home switching up to an American push reel mower for my fescue lawn. The Interweb gurus say this type of grass/lawn should be left tall around 3" most of the time to promote its health. Most available American reel mowers have a max blade height of .5 to 1.75" for cutting options. Does it really matter since I'm going to make the commitment to mow every week until the dormant season of winter? Why do I care? Because I'm beginning to put some serious time into my lawn now and I don't want to change things up over and over again regarding the 5 golden rules made to maintain a healthy lawn.
Ha, and then I watched long enough to see you push that reel mower.
yeah, all spring I was mowing often(every other day or 3rd) and as short as my mower would go on my KBG, then this summer I worked it up, 2nd notch, next 3rd, 4th height, and last at the 5th setting and was only mowing once a week; but I just did not like how it looked and I think I got more weeds ...now I'm already back down to the 3rd setting height; taking it slow to get there and next week going one notch lower to 2nd setting plus mowing more often for about two more weeks till I drop down to the lowest height again(about 1") - but my question is: did mowing taller in the summer *really* help with water retention, heat stress, prohibit weeds, promote more root development, or anything at all? or is that just a myth
+Benjamin T. Minkler Great question about length. I have always stayed in the 3.5” range. Years of longer cut height. This is the first year short. As far as I’m seeing I have no difference in amount of water, weeds are still nonexistent, and roots haven’t suffered. I do think that if you feed heavy and cut short you’re likely to shorten roots and have more disease issues
As soon as the dog came into frame I didn’t hear a single word you said for the next minute or so. 😂
Omar Garcia 😂😂
Great video
+jamie lahugh thank you!
Great content! First Arizonan!
francisfausto bringing the heat from AZ!
Is keeping my cool season turf at 2" with a rotary fine as long as I'm keeping up with mowing and feeding? When I got into lawn care, I followed the theory of mowing super tall for less heat stress etc, but I've seen a lot of short cut cool lawns now to think maybe the tall cut theory has been debunked?
My goal this year was to prove/disprove that theory. So far... I’m debunking it. I mow more, but that’s all!
This is my first season I haven’t had to use chemicals on my lawn. I thought it was due to the gallons of humic I sprayed, but maybe it’s the mowing frequency.
+Bird Dog both!!!
How low can you go with KBG?...Can you get it to putting green height, ie 1/4" or lower?
+Midnight Monoculture I haven’t gone below half inch but I will be seeding a dwarf bluegrass variety in this fall to make it able to go shorter easier. I am planning on borrowing a greens mower at the end of the month and seeing if this grass will do 1/4”
What about non-irrigated cool-season lawns? If I normally cut at 4", isn't it fine to let it go a week or two so it holds more water in the leaf blade when it is too hot (over 90), compared to mowing every couple days at 4" and stressing it from mowing when it is too hot out? It seems to keep it green longer and then it's quicker to recover when I finally cut it when it cools down.
+Eavee I think that’s totally fine if it isnt growing much because you won’t be cutting more than 30% off at that length. More of the issue is when turf is cut way short after long growth. You can train it to stay low and hold water even at the short lengths, but TTTF look and does better longer anyhow, I wouldn’t take that turf low
Good stuff!
Thanks B!
Thanks, very interesting!
+Al Beal thanks al!
#LawnDog Great vid! Keep the info coming, please!
+xzor01 thank you so much! and I will!
Great info brotha! Your co-star, however, stole the show...lol.
I want to roll around on your lawn like the dog!
Don’t underestimate the power of the mow.
SuperBighead100 damn straight
Wow!
Awesome video as always. You seem more determined than usual this time. Different camera work? I dunno. Just saying 👋.
Justin Velazquez gotta up my game... I think I rush through too often
Nah! Your unique style is what differentiates you from the others. It is clear that you put your focus into authenticity, from your one shot talks to the way you don’t oversell your products. It is refreshing to see the “real” John Perry. Keep doing what you are doing! Thanks for the reply.
Hercy should be in all videos
techassyst he’s a good cameo dog. Always has good advice 😂
Even though I'm against them; you should probably get a robot mower since your gone from your home so long.
+Steven Luedtke meh. I’d rather just occasionally have longer grass to cut. I’ll have someone cut it for me a couple times while I’m gone in this next trip
Yep
I’ll have to warn you when one is going to drop to give you an unfair advantage for first 😂😂
Lawncology that’s what I’m talkin bout 👍🏻👍🏻😜😜
Reel first
Brett's Grasscapades reely reely first
Lets make mowing great again. :)
I guess i should be cutting my KBG shorter hahahaha
Bighaus if you want to cut more, yes
@@Lawncology I just recently cut down to 3.25 from 3.75 and the lawn looks terrible. I thought I was doing so well
+Bighaus got down into the stems a bit? You can cut out a lot of thickness at first
@@Lawncology I guess I did. Didn't think half an inch would result in this though.
First.
Jason G so quick
@@Lawncology That's NOT what she said. 😁
Jason G 😂😂
Jason G did you beat me to it? 😖 LoL
@@yardmama3660 Sorry Girl!! 😎
A year late to this video, but you might want to have Hercy's ears checked, John. The way he's slinging his head and rubbing his ears on the ground makes me think he might have an ear infection.
Takes forever to get to points. I’m sure there is useful information in there somewhere but not easily digestible in my opinion
Dirty first
Lush Lawns super dirty
Why not use a robotic mower
No real lawn guy would do that. Plus that is for a lazy person.
@@brianm7402 I beg to differ. It is a perfect solution for somebody with a busy job. I have 14,000 sq feet lawn that has never been this healthy since I bought the automower. It cuts daily at night and I get to enjoy the garden during the day. (I do use most of the Next products. ) My riding mower sits in the garage collecting dust. It is hard to imagine going back to a riding mower.
I don’t know that I need one, I’m ok with letting it grow while I’m away but I do have the option of having my house sitter cut it. It will likely get cut once while I’m away
@@harshame123 And that's fine. But a true lawn enthusiast enjoys cutting the grass. I know I do.
@@Lawncology I couldn't regularly mow my lawn. Usually it is once a week and then I had to cut more than 1/3 of the height. The lawn looked stressed. Robot mower solves this issue. Like you said the lawn likes regular mowing and it is thicker and lush.
you need to dethatch that lawn... it looks like crap
alex l I’m pretty sure that’s a joke. There a no thatch anywhere.