After the long winter season that always seems never ending as it drags itself into March and even April sometimes, you may start to notice your grass growing and realize its almost time to mow your lawn! So when is the ideal time or date to mow your lawn in Pennsylvania?
Well, its not a clean cut answer unfortunately. The dates might not be the same every year, but home owners and lawn care service providers alike can all agree that its not hard to see the grass starts to grow faster as you head into April. Its truly all about height and making sure your grass has awoken from its winter slumber. Make sure the temperature has been consistently above 40°F and its not sopping wet from the spring rains.
In Pennsylvania the grass types are usually Kentucky Bluegrass, Perennial Ryegrass, or a Fescue. Rye grasses can be cut when they reach a lower limit of 2" because they are more resilient. Bluegrass and the Fescue do better when you wait for them to reach at least 3 inches before cutting. All of these grasses should be cut by the time they reach 3 and 3/4". To the right is a chart from Turf Care Supply that explains that with a more visual approach.
Suggested mowing height is a different topic, but for the three noted, its important that you don't take off more than 1/3 of the height or you risk damaging the grass. If it is 3 Inches tall, cutting down to 2 inches is the minimum height you can cut your grass to. If cutting at 2" you can go down to about 1 and 1/2".
To reiterate, your first mow in Pennsylvania is dependent on temperature, grass height, and weather conditions (rain). The goal might be to get it done in early April if you had a warm March, or you might have to wait until mid-late April to finally get that chance to mow.
While you're waiting on your chance to mow your lawn, you can spend some time researching other things that will help promote a lush green lawn, eliminate those weeds, and make you the envy of the whole neighborhood!