Mowing your lawn is an essential part of keeping it healthy and looking its best, but you'll want to follow the 1/3 rule when doing so. The 1/3 rule is a guideline that states you should never cut more than 1/3 off the top of the grass blades, as it can put unnecessary stress on your lawn in North Carolina. This rule helps your grass grow as healthy as possible because it keeps it at an ideal height, ensuring there's enough surface area for it to perform certain functions properly. If you skip a week of mowing and your grass is longer than normal, you should still follow the 1/3 rule and gradually get it back down to the ideal height.

What is the 1/3 rule for mowing your lawn?

The 1/3 rule is a common practice for lawn mowing, which means you should never cut more than 1/3 off the top of the grass blades during each session. This rule is important because removing too much can put unnecessary stress on your lawn. When you cut too much off the top, it can leave your lawn vulnerable to stressors, including diseases and pests, and inhibit its ability to perform photosynthesis, which is how it produces food for itself. By following the 1/3 rule, you can avoid causing damage to your lawn and ensure it stays healthy and green.

How does the 1/3 rule for mowing help your grass grow as healthy as possible?

Green lawn in Charlotte, NC, with mowing stripes and trees.

The 1/3 rule for mowing helps your grass grow as healthy as possible because it keeps it at an ideal height. After all, lawns should be kept at a certain height, and following this rule ensures you don't remove crucial pieces of the grass blades that aid in photosynthesis. With more surface area, they can absorb more sunlight and produce more chlorophyll, the pigment responsible for their green color. This, in turn, helps your lawn stay lush and vibrant. Additionally, following this rule helps promote deeper root development, building up its resilience to stress.

The 1/3 rule for mowing helps your grass stay dense, which is important for crowding out weeds.

What if you skip a week of mowing and your grass is longer than normal?

If you skip a week of mowing and your grass is longer than normal, you should still follow the 1/3 rule. While it may be tempting to cut your grass shorter to get it back to the ideal height, doing so can cause more harm than good. Instead, you should cut 1/3 of the grass blades' height and gradually get it back down to the ideal height over the course of a few weeks. This will help your turf recover from the longer growth and prevent any unnecessary stress or damage.

Call us today to sign up for our lawn mowing service!

At DalaCasa Landscape Management, we offer a lawn mowing service to keep your grass pristine and manicured throughout the growing season! This service includes weekly visits when it's growing actively and bi-weekly in the winter to maintain its ideal height, and you can trust that we'll follow the 1/3 rule to avoid causing unnecessary stress. Not only that, but string-trimming, edging, and blowing debris off hard surfaces are also performed to ensure a clean finish! With us, you can trust that we'll keep your lawn looking great throughout the growing season while prioritizing its health during our service!

Our lawn mowing service is offered to residential and commercial property owners, as well as HOAs, in Charlotte, Waxhaw, Concord, NC, and throughout the surrounding areas. We also proudly serve select locations in South Carolina. Call us today at (704) 248-6294 to sign up!