For some reason when Autumn hits every year, I get a lot of questions about lawn mowing and cutting. It seems that you guys think there is some strange secret involved with lawn mowing in the Fall. With that in mind, I decided to write up some quick tips because you guys know how passionate I am about cutting the lawn anyway!

First off, during the early fall, I still want you to cut the lawn tall. If you have been cutting at 4″ like I recommend, you can back it down one notch and come in at the 3 to 3.5″ mark and be just fine. The reason I still want you to cut tall is because of blade leaf surface area. Remember, grass blades grab sunlight for photosynthesis. This process essentially creates sugars that are sent down the grass plant to the roots. As you know, grass expands roots in the fall, making the lawn thicker. That means we want as much leaf blade surface as possible so the roots can expand more and more. We also get shorter days in the fall, meaning we get less sunlight.

Next, you should still mulch the clippings as long as the temperatures are above 50 degrees. Mulching returns nutrients into the soil and that is very healthy. If it gets below 50 degrees, however, the clippings will not degrade well and that could cause future problems. It is, however, ok to catch clippings if you are also sucking up leaves in the yard.

On your final cut of the season, (usually November in most areas of the United States) it is ok to mow a little shorter. I’d say 2.5″ is actually just fine. This will keep the lawn from laying over underneath snow pack. It will also reduce the chance of snow mold developing.

There you go guys, Fall time mowing tips you never thought you’d need to know!

It is that time of year where Japanese Beetles will be munching and crunching on your delicate roses and other shrubs and trees. In this video blog post, I show you how to identify the Japanese beetle, as well as tell you what to spray and show you how to spray it as well. Easy and simple…now watch the video and then look below.

Thanks to my Dad who played “spray model” in this one. Those are his knockout roses that were infested with the Japanese beetles. If you are viewing the blog in the email newsletter, please click the title above to come to the site and view it. I get some nice closeups of the beetles on this one!

Here is an organic/natural/green insecticide choice that I would also endorse for killing Japanese beetles. Get a couple bottles guys… this is not a concentrate. It is pre-mixed in a small spray bottle.