Many men (and women too) love mowing the lawn, but a lot of people don’t do it at the right time of the day. Because of this, they end up with grass that isn’t healthy, and a lawn that often falters. We’re going to try and help you fix that with this guide. What time of day should you mow? We’ll get to that later too. The purpose of this guide is to help you so that you know when to mow just as you need to water or fertilize your grass at certain times of the day as well.

Morning Blues

A lot of gardeners think that it’s best to mow the lawn during the morning hours. The problem with this though, is that a lot of people mow too early, and there is wet dew on the grass. This can be problematic for you, your equipment, and even your lawn. If you have lawn sprinklers, it can even be wet if it’s before 8am. Most professionals suggest that you mow anytime mid-morning for the best results (between 8am and 10:30am). After this time, the ground begins to warm up and the temps will increase throughout the day, making it harder on you as well as increasing the chance for your grass to get sunburnt if you mow it during the hotter times.

If You Have to Mow After the Morning

There are a lot of people who enjoy mowing later in the evening, between 4pm and 7pm. This of course depends on the weather, as well as the temperatures. You naturally don’t want to mow too late, but you don’t want to mow too early if the temperatures are high either. In some areas of the world, the sun is beating down on your lawn at its hottest around 4pm-6pm, so you don’t want to do this. Summer months also may cause it to get dark later, which can give you a little more time to mow before it is too late in the day, since that can harm your lawn (more on that in a bit). The reasons why people may want to do this though, is because the heat of the afternoon may go away, and your grass and outside temperatures may decrease some, while avoiding mowing so late that you can cause diseases and fungal issues with your lawn.

When to Not Mow Your Lawn

Now that we’ve covered the best times of the day to mow your  lawn, we’re going to tell you the worst times, and when to avoid mowing your lawn. We’re also go into a bit of depth on why you don’t want to mow your yard during these times. In a nutshell though, it can harm your lawn, and also harm you if you mow your lawn during these times.

 

  • Mowing Too Early in the Morning

 

Mowing in the morning can cause for wet mowing, even from dew.  Not only will wet grass cause more problems with clogs, and your mowing equipment, but it can also be catastrophic for you since the wet grass causes more dangers to you. It also causes more dangers for your grass. You can end up hurting your grass a lot by mowing when it is wet. Mowing wet grass in the morning causes more wear and tear instead of even cuts, and also opens up the risk of exposing your sun to the day’s warmer temperatures later.

 

  • Mowing Mid-Afternoon (or throughout the mid-day)

 

Mowing your grass after 10am (some may get away with 11am, but no later) can be catastrophic for your grass and cause the heat to torture your lawn. Your lawn is already going through stress and issues because of the heat, and when you clip it during this time of the day, you’re adding even more stress on your lawn. You’ll burn your grass much faster and cause it to die out sooner before the fall and colder months set in. It can also cause more open and empty spaces of your lawn. Also, it’s extremely hard on your lawnmower too, because it’s going to get a lot hotter than it would during earlier times of the day. Depending on the weather and the heat index during summer months, it can also hurt you and cause numerous health problems just being outside during these hours – from heat stroke all the way down to other heat-related injuries.

 

  • Night Mowing

 

Some people find it fun to mow at night. This may be one of the worst things you can do too. Sure, you may feel a lot more comfortable, and think your lawn will feel the same with the lower temperatures of the night – but mowing during the late evening and night can open your grass up to disease and lawn fungus. Grass has to literally recover from you cutting it in order to maintain its health. And every time you cut it; your lawn may end up being more susceptible to issues since you’re basically lowering its immune system. If you do this at night, there may be too much moisture on the ground, and your grass can develop a fungal issue that can cause your lawn to fail.

What if I Have to Do It?

Of course, there are times you may have to mow at one of these times. Life has a way of surprising us like that – whether it’s life situations or even the weather itself. Either way, it’s a good general practice to try to not mow during these times. It doesn’t mean ever, but it does mean that there are reasons why you don’t and shouldn’t mow at these times. Try to keep off-times minimal when it comes to mowing your lawn if possible.

Wrapping it Up

Okay, so now you know what time of the day is the best – in case you skipped that first paragraph, it’s mid or late morning. You want to have a happy and healthy lawn, therefore, it’s important that you try to heed the warnings of this guide. Do that though, and you should be fine!