DH and I are debating on how often to mow our St. Augustine lawn. I have heard that it needs to be longer to survive the summer heat with less water. He says that if you let it grow too long, it will kill the lawn. He says that when it gets too long the grass near the ground dies. I have heard this about other grasses, but am wondering if it is true for St. Augustine. I have been wrong before, but I am wondering if it can get "too high." What do ya'll think?
Tabitha
St. Augustine height debate
According to Extension, St Augustine grass should be kept at 2.5 inches if it gets a lot of sun. St Augustine in shady areas should be kept at 3.5 inches. The reasoning behind this is that a longer blade of grass is able to absorb more of the dim sunlight and therefore stay healthier.
They also recommend that you should mow a minimum of once each week during the growing season. And the 1/3 rule states that you should never remove more than 1/3 of the leaf blade at any single mowing.
And, it is now recommended to leave your clippings in the lawn.
Thanks ceejaytown for the information. We do leave the clippings on the lawn, and sometimes I've been known to collect other people's clippings too!
Tabitha
Rule of thumb for St Aug is to mow it on your lawn mower's highest setting. I used to mow at the 2" height but started mowing it higher 3 years ago. I've not seen evidence that growing it long has any negative consequences to the grass.
Carla