The first cut of your freshly laid turf or newly seeded lawn is often the most memorable. However, deciding when to cut new grass is crucial to its outcome once it has been cut. Being too eager to cut your grass before it’s ready for mowing can lead to damage and it may even lead to it never growing back properly too.
When should you cut new grass? At Darimo, we recommend waiting for the turf to reach a height of 5 to 6 cm or newly seeded lawn to reach a height of 7 to 8 cm before you cut it for the first time. If the grass has been able to reach this height in the first place, it’s a clear indication that its growing well and it can be cut safely without causing any issues.
Depending upon whether it’s turf or a newly seed lawn, below are some further checks before you cut new grass.
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Preparing Your Lawnmower
During mid-spring and the summer, your grass will probably be ready to cut as long as its reached 5 to 6 cm in height. However, if its the first cut, you will want to sharpen your lawnmower blades beforehand. If your lawnmower has blunt blades, you run the risk of ripping the grass rather than slicing it. If you have a newly seeded lawn, the sharpness of the blades is even more crucial because the roots wouldn’t be as strong and they can be easily ripped out by blunt blades.
Cutting New Turf
Before attempting to cut new turf, you should always tug on the grass to ensure its bedded in place and that it doesn’t lift. If it doesn’t lift, you can then aim to cut around 20% off the height of the grass, which will normally bring it down to around 3 to 4 centimetres in height. In order to do this, you will have to put your lawnmower on a high setting. Once you have finished mowing, remove the clippings and water the turf afterwards.
Cutting Newly Seeded Lawn
Unlike turf, a seed needs to grow more shoots from the base and thicken before the first cut. Depending upon the blend of grass seed you have used will determine how fast it grows. However, most begin to spout after 10 days and are ready to cut from 20 to 30 days when it reaches 7 to 8 cm in height.
As with turf, you want to aim to cut around 20% off the height from the first cut to bring the height down to around 5 cm. This will often result in using the highest setting on your lawnmower but you can begin to lower this the next time you cut the lawn. After the first cut, you will also want to remove clippings and water the lawn to promote healthy growth.
Our Top Tips To Cutting New Grass
- The first cut shouldn’t reduce the height by more than 20%
- Mow your lawn often but take little off
- Keep your lawnmower blades sharp
- Avoid mowing when its wet, frosty or very hot
- Change your mowing direction each time you mow the new grass
Conclusion
Although it can be tempting to cut your new grass short straightaway, you will honestly be ruining all your hard work. If you have laid new turf, wait until its reached at least 5 to 6 cm and give it a tug beforehand. If its a freshly seeded lawn, wait until it’s slightly longer (7 to 8 cm) because the roots need to gain strength in the soil.
