The single most common lawn mistake I see all summer is scalping. Here is the right height for each grass type once the heat sets in.
Every spring somebody tells me they like to cut it real low so they can go longer between mows. I get the logic. In a Louisiana summer it is also the fastest way to fry your lawn. Scalping in the heat stresses the grass, scorches the crown, and opens the door for weeds and bugs.
Taller grass shades its own roots, holds moisture, and grows deeper, which is exactly what it needs when it is 96 degrees with matching humidity. Here is where to set the deck.
The Right Height by Grass Type
St. Augustine, the most common lawn around here, wants three and a half to four inches in summer. It is a shade-tolerant grass and it hates being cut short. Keep it tall and it stays thick and green.
Centipede likes one and a half to two and a half inches. It is a low, slow grass, so do not push it tall, but do not scalp it either. Bermuda is the exception, it actually likes a lower cut, around one to two inches, and it wants feeding more than the others. Zoysia sits in the middle at two to three inches.
The One-Third Rule
Never take off more than a third of the blade in a single cut. If your St. Augustine is at four inches, you are pulling it down to a hair under three, not down to one. Cut more than a third and you shock the plant, and a shocked lawn in July browns out fast.
This is also why weekly mowing beats letting it get tall and then hacking it down. Skip two weeks in June and you are forced to either scalp it or leave clumps everywhere. Steady cutting at the right height is how a lawn gets thick enough to choke the weeds out on its own.
Keep Your Blades Sharp
A dull blade tears the grass instead of slicing it, and torn tips turn brown and brown out the whole lawn no matter how perfect your height is. Look close the day after you mow. If the tips are frayed and tan, your blade needs sharpening. We sharpen ours constantly for this exact reason.
Get the height right, follow the one-third rule, keep the blade sharp, and your lawn will take the Louisiana summer a whole lot better. If you would rather not think about any of it, that is what we do every week.
Keep Reading / Get Help
