If you want your lawn to look better than your neighbors, you need to step up your mowing game. While the task can be incredibly straightforward on the surface, many important lawn care tips can make your mowing go from normal, to godly. For those who want to make this leap, here are six tips for mowing like a pro in 2023: 

1. Mow at the Right Height

To make sure your mowing does not go overboard, you need to be incredibly aware of what height your mowing deck is at during every mowing session. Typically, you want to leave about two inches of length to your grass at minimum. Depending on the location where you’re mowing, and how often you mow, you may want to take a more specialized approach. To ensure you’re mowing at the correct height, you need to contact a lawn care pro in your area, who can give your lawn a top-tier cut, and give you instructions on how to handle your mowing tasks correctly in the future. 

2. Maintenance is Everything

If you want to mow year-round without frustrating and costly delays, you need to ensure your mower is up for the task. Doing regular mower maintenance (once or twice a year) can help save you time and money. If you notice your blades getting dull, and choose to ignore them, you’ll not only pose a major risk to your mower’s functionality, but you can make the mowing process much more dangerous as well. If you’re mowing in a neighborhood, you owe it to your neighbors to keep your mowing practices as safe and smooth as possible, so make sure you take your maintenance needs seriously in 2023. 

3. Never Cut Wet Grass

Although it can be frustrating to postpone a mowing session (especially if you’re constantly busy with your work and personal life’s many needs), it’s sometimes necessary for safety reasons. Trying to cut a lawn where the grass is wet can cause you to slide, and even lose control of your mower. Several people die every year from being crushed by mowers, so taking safety issues seriously is a non-negotiable for responsible homeowners. Additionally, cutting wet grass is much less effective, and can cause you to get an uneven or even too-short cut. All around, it’s best that you simply wait until your grass is no longer soaked, and is safe to cut. 

4. Invest in the Right Mower

Mowing is one of your top responsibilities as a homeowner, so having a mower that can be faithful, effective, and (if you’re willing to spend extra) even fun to use is important. If you have a large yard, having a mower that’s fast enough, and wide enough, to get the job done in a timely fashion is key. Zero-degree turn mowers are the luxury grade, but you can get away with a regular lawn mower as well. For smaller yards, a traditional push mower can still get the job done. For those who are too busy to reliably mow (especially if they have a large yard), it may be best to leave the job up to a team of mowing professionals who can get your yard done right, and who can handle your lawn care tasks on a consistent, reliable schedule. 

5. Find the Right Mowing Pattern

For those who love to make their lawn look great, finding the right mowing pattern to use during each mowing session is key. The traditional line pattern is the most popular, but those who like a little funk sometimes go for a zagged pattern that gives their yard a more distinctive personality. If you’re trying to attract home buyers to your property, using a unique mowing pattern can be incredibly useful as well. 

6. Don’t Forget to Use Quality Mulch

Lastly, you must take the time to find out what type of mulch is best for your lawn care needs, and that you do mulching sessions alongside your mowing sessions. Doing these in tandem helps both your grass and mulch to respond to your soil in a more effective, and lawn-healthy fashion, after all. The more effort you put into your lawn care, the better results you’ll see. Mulching can be hard to fully understand without a pro’s help on the first try, but after that, it should become a breeze. Depending on what type of climate you’re living in, the type of mulch you’ll need to keep your lawn healthy can vary wildly, so make sure to do your research thoroughly.