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CNET
4 hours ago
- Climate
- CNET
These 5 Gardening Tips Made My Lawn the Brag of the Block
Mowing your lawn isn't just about keeping things tidy -- in the summer heat, it's one of the most important tools you have to help your grass survive. Scorching sun and quick evaporation can turn a healthy yard brown fast, but small changes to your mowing routine can make all the difference. If you're cutting too short, mowing in peak heat or using dull blades, your lawn might be struggling more than it needs to. Instead, raise your mower height, mow early in the morning or late in the evening, and leave the clippings behind to help the soil hold onto moisture. These tweaks can reduce stress on your grass and boost its chances of staying green, even during the hottest weeks. With just a few adjustments, your yard can thrive while your neighbors' turn crispy. Instead of letting your grass become a casualty of the summer sun, take a few simple steps to give it a better shot at staying lush and green. Raise the mower height, mow when it's cooler outside, and leave the clippings on the ground to help the soil retain moisture. These may sound like small changes, but they make a big impact over time. With the right approach, your lawn can stay vibrant even when the weather is working against it. 1. Keep it long A short trim can cause damage to your lawn, especially during hotter months. Chris Wedel/CNET For some, a perfect lawn is always well-trimmed and consistently kept short. Unfortunately, while this may look nice, it can be a detriment to the overall life of your grass. During the hottest days of summer when your yard is competing with sweltering heat, blazing sun and less rain, it's best to keep the grass about 4 inches high after a cut. That may seem long but taller grass retains more water and has longer, healthier roots. 2. Wait until the grass is dry Mowing when there is still dew on the ground can damage your lawn. Russell Holly/CNET It may seem obvious during the summer when it reaches unbearable temps during the day to try and get started mowing early in the cool morning hours. But if there's still dew on the ground, you can lose time and damage your lawn. This is caused by the high likelihood that wet grass will clump up in the discharge chute (that flappy thing on the side), requiring you to stop and remove the clog. Plus, your mower tires won't get great traction either and could put tracks in your yard. Instead, wait until later in the morning when the dew dries, or mow the lawn late in the day before the evening dew. Also, time your sprinklers to start up in the late evening or at night so there isn't extra moisture on the grass when you mow. Here are some more watering tips for your lawn. 3. Go slower Keep your speeds low to make mowing go fast. Alina Bradford/CNET Short on time or just want to get the chore over faster? Then going fast makes the most sense, right? But while it's tempting to go fast while mowing, it can actually create more work for you. By not taking your time and letting the mower do its job properly, there's a good chance it will leave some areas uncut and give the lawn an uneven, sloppy look. This means you'll have to take more time to re-mow it to make the lawn look correct. Instead, take the path of the turtle -- slow and steady. A slower, mid-speed mowing session is faster and better for your lawn than zooming around the grass and ultimately needing to re-mow it later. Also, remember that the choke needs to be lower for slower speeds to run properly. 4. Be consistent My yard has never had such a professional look. Chris Wedel/CNET Mowing randomly across your lawn can take up more time and lead to an uneven cut. Follow a pattern instead, using this technique: Start on the edge of your lawn with the discharge chute pointing toward your lawn Mow around the perimeter of your lawn When you get to your starting point, make a U-turn so the discharge chute is facing the strip you just cut Keep mowing around the perimeter, making sure the discharge chute is pointed toward where you just mowed. In the end, your lawn will end up with a nice pattern and the discharge chute won't clog. How to Prep Your Lawn Mower for the Season How to Prep Your Lawn Mower for the Season Click to unmute Video Player is loading. Play Video Pause Skip Backward Skip Forward Next playlist item Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration 2:58 Loaded : 3.33% 0:00 Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 2:58 Share Fullscreen This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Text Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Caption Area Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Drop shadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Close Modal Dialog This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. Close Modal Dialog This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. How to Prep Your Lawn Mower for the Season 5. Prep your mower for the next round Regular maintenance on your mower is important to ensure it is reliable and does a great job each and every time you take it out. Spending a little time after you finish mowing will keep your mower in tip-top shape and lasting longer. Start by turning the mower over and rinsing the blades and discharge chute with a garden hose before putting it away. This will prevent grass from building up, drying out and being much harder to remove. If the air filter on your push mower looks dirty, give it a good wash with some mild dish soap and rinse it with the garden hose. Set the filter aside to dry so you can put it on right before mowing next time. One of the best time savers is keeping your lawn mower blade sharp. A dull blade will require you to go over the same patch of lawn more than once to cut any raggedy bits left behind. A sharp blade allows you to zip around your lawn just once and still get great results. Most mower repair shops will sharpen the blades for a small fee, or you can do it yourself with these tips. FAQs to help you get the best-looking lawn What order should I mow my lawn? It's best to start mowing around the edges of your lawn, with the grass clippings going into your uncut grass. After cutting around the entire perimeter of your yard, turn back around and mow in the opposite direction, with the grass chute pointing toward the perimeter grass you already cut. Continue this mowing direction until complete. Want to make watering your lawn easier? Here's CNET's guide to making your own automated lawn watering system.
CNET
21-07-2025
- Climate
- CNET
Keep Your Grass Emerald Green All Summer With These 5 Tips
Mowing might seem like a basic chore, but in the summer heat, it plays a major role in keeping your lawn alive. With the sun beating down and moisture evaporating fast, how you mow can make the difference between a thriving yard and a patchy one. Cutting your grass too short or at the wrong time of day can leave it scorched and stressed. Skipping water or ignoring dull mower blades can also make things worse. A few small changes to your routine can help your grass hold onto moisture, bounce back from heat, and stay green through the hottest weeks. Instead of letting your grass become a casualty of the summer sun, take a few simple steps to give it a better shot at staying lush and green. Raise the mower height, mow when it's cooler outside, and leave the clippings on the ground to help the soil retain moisture. These may sound like small changes, but they make a big impact over time. With the right approach, your lawn can stay vibrant even when the weather is working against it. 1. Keep it long A short trim can cause damage to your lawn, especially during hotter months. Chris Wedel/CNET For some, a perfect lawn is always well-trimmed and consistently kept short. Unfortunately, while this may look nice, it can be a detriment to the overall life of your grass. During the hottest days of summer when your yard is competing with sweltering heat, blazing sun and less rain, it's best to keep the grass about 4 inches high after a cut. That may seem long but taller grass retains more water and has longer, healthier roots. 2. Wait until the grass is dry Mowing when there is still dew on the ground can damage your lawn. Russell Holly/CNET It may seem obvious during the summer when it reaches unbearable temps during the day to try and get started mowing early in the cool morning hours. But if there's still dew on the ground, you can lose time and damage your lawn. This is caused by the high likelihood that wet grass will clump up in the discharge chute (that flappy thing on the side), requiring you to stop and remove the clog. Plus, your mower tires won't get great traction either and could put tracks in your yard. Instead, wait until later in the morning when the dew dries, or mow the lawn late in the day before the evening dew. Also, time your sprinklers to start up in the late evening or at night so there isn't extra moisture on the grass when you mow. Here are some more watering tips for your lawn. 3. Go slower Keep your speeds low to make mowing go fast. Alina Bradford/CNET Short on time or just want to get the chore over faster? Then going fast makes the most sense, right? But while it's tempting to go fast while mowing, it can actually create more work for you. By not taking your time and letting the mower do its job properly, there's a good chance it will leave some areas uncut and give the lawn an uneven, sloppy look. This means you'll have to take more time to re-mow it to make the lawn look correct. Instead, take the path of the turtle -- slow and steady. A slower, mid-speed mowing session is faster and better for your lawn than zooming around the grass and ultimately needing to re-mow it later. Also, remember that the choke needs to be lower for slower speeds to run properly. 4. Be consistent My yard has never had such a professional look. Chris Wedel/CNET Mowing randomly across your lawn can take up more time and lead to an uneven cut. Follow a pattern instead, using this technique: Start on the edge of your lawn with the discharge chute pointing toward your lawn Mow around the perimeter of your lawn When you get to your starting point, make a U-turn so the discharge chute is facing the strip you just cut Keep mowing around the perimeter, making sure the discharge chute is pointed toward where you just mowed. In the end, your lawn will end up with a nice pattern and the discharge chute won't clog. How to Prep Your Lawn Mower for the Season How to Prep Your Lawn Mower for the Season Click to unmute Video Player is loading. Play Video Pause Skip Backward Skip Forward Next playlist item Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration 2:58 Loaded : 3.33% 0:00 Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 2:58 Share Fullscreen This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Text Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Caption Area Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Drop shadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Close Modal Dialog This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. Close Modal Dialog This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. How to Prep Your Lawn Mower for the Season 5. Prep your mower for the next round Regular maintenance on your mower is important to ensure it is reliable and does a great job each and every time you take it out. Spending a little time after you finish mowing will keep your mower in tip-top shape and lasting longer. Start by turning the mower over and rinsing the blades and discharge chute with a garden hose before putting it away. This will prevent grass from building up, drying out and being much harder to remove. If the air filter on your push mower looks dirty, give it a good wash with some mild dish soap and rinse it with the garden hose. Set the filter aside to dry so you can put it on right before mowing next time. One of the best time savers is keeping your lawn mower blade sharp. A dull blade will require you to go over the same patch of lawn more than once to cut any raggedy bits left behind. A sharp blade allows you to zip around your lawn just once and still get great results. Most mower repair shops will sharpen the blades for a small fee, or you can do it yourself with these tips. FAQs to help you get the best-looking lawn What order should I mow my lawn? It's best to start mowing around the edges of your lawn, with the grass clippings going into your uncut grass. After cutting around the entire perimeter of your yard, turn back around and mow in the opposite direction, with the grass chute pointing toward the perimeter grass you already cut. Continue this mowing direction until complete. Want to make watering your lawn easier? Here's CNET's guide to making your own automated lawn watering system.
The Sun
08-05-2025
- Climate
- The Sun
Ex-royal gardener reveals what you should NEVER do to your lawn to keep grass green & healthy
A FORMER royal gardener has revealed one thing you should never do to your lawn if you want to keep grass green and healthy. With temperatures set to climb again this weekend, after a chilly bank holiday, many of us are likely making plans to spend time relaxing in the garden. 2 2 However, after a long winter of neglect, our lawns may be in need of a bit of TLC. You may be tempted to get your mower out and cut your grass in it during the heat, however, former royal gardener Jack Stooks who worked in the royal gardens of the Highgrove Estate for more than 20 years, revealed that this is a mistake. "When it gets too hot, what you definitely don't want to do is keep mowing the grass and keeping it as short as possible", he told Big Fat Links. "You want to forgo cutting for a week or two so that the grass keeps growing by itself, rather than depleting it. "Wait until you have some moisture back in the soil." Ivana Agustina, Head of Project Management at ShrubHub seconded this tip, stating: "You're slicing into already-dry blades under a blazing sun. 'That kind of trauma leaves your grass vulnerable to pests, yellowing, and fungal infections.' Jack added that it is also not a good idea to do any planting in hot weather. "You don't want to put too much stress on the plants by moving them or planting anything if you can help it. "People will be planting bedding plants and potted plants for the summer, but they will constantly need attention and watering morning and night. "So, if you're planting anything right now, it's only bedding plants, and they will need a lot of water. "I would suggest not putting them in the borders yet but putting them in pots and checking them morning and night." Jack previously revealed that a great tip for banishing slugs from your garden is using brassica leaves, which can be found on vegetables such as Brussel sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower and more. The expert explained that you should place these leaves down in the corners of your vegetable patches with something sturdy on top to keep in place. He said to check these 'every day' and you are likely to find up to 'five or six' slugs, before either 'hand picking off' slugs, or 'feeding to birds'. Jack added: 'Put the brassica leaf onto the ground and put a rock on top of it to keep it in place. 'In the morning, go out early, pick up the brassica leaf and you'll find about five or six slugs on each. 'You can either hand pick them off, or people tend to go and feed them to the birds, but that isn't such a good idea because they can scuttle off into the garden. 'I think the best way is to put them into a beer trap, that way they can drink the beer and enjoy their last few minutes…'
