Mowing the lawn is one of the crucial parts of garden maintenance, and leaving for too long can mean a very unmanageable lawn to mow. For this reason, many people like to mow their lawn frequently, but what if there has just been a hard frost? Can you mow the lawn after a frost?
You should not mow the lawn immediately after a frost. When grass is very cold, it is not actively growing, so cutting the grass after a frost may cause it to be severely damaged. Wait for the lawn to completely thaw and warm up entirely after a frost before mowing it.
A tidy lawn is a high priority for many, but frost may come as an unwelcome interruption to a lawn maintenance schedule. Let’s find out if it is safe to mow the lawn after a frost or not.
Can You Mow The Lawn After A Frost?
Mowing the lawn is a vital aspect of garden maintenance, and a tidy lawn is one of life’s great simple pleasures.
Some like to mow their lawn all year round, but there can be some instances when it may be better to leave the lawn be, even if it does look a little untidy.
One such instance is if there has been a frost. Frosted glass has been exposed to very cold temperatures, and this may mean that the grass has halted growing until the weather warms up.
In this instance, mowing the lawn is not a good idea. You should not mow the lawn after a frost but rather wait for the lawn to completely thaw out and entirely warm up before breaking out the mower.
It is best to let the grass be after a frost, rather than mowing it right away, as this may affect the grass very negatively in a very short period of time.
Even if your grass is in urgent need of a trim, if there has been a recent frost, leave it alone until the weather warms up to ensure that your grass survives the winter.
Does Mowing Grass After A Frost Damage Lawn?
It is not a great idea to mow the lawn after there has been a frost for many good reasons, but the most important is that it may very well cause damage to the lawn.
The reason for this is
because when grass experiences temperatures that are below 40 degrees F (4.5 degrees C), the grass halts or slows down leaf growth.
This means that if the grass is cut after a frost, the broken ends of the grass blades are not likely to begin growing immediately. This will leave the grass exposed to the cold air without closing any “wounds” and without causing the grass to grow.
This may cause severe and lasting damage to the grass that may not be entirely apparent until the warmer weather arrives in spring.
For this reason, it is never a good idea to mow the lawn after a frost, and it may cause severe and irreparable damage to the lawn.
How Cold Is Too Cold For Mowing The Lawn?
A healthy lawn can be mowed and maintained all year long, but there are some circumstances when the grass should not be mowed at all.
Grass should not be mowed if the temperature outside is too cold. Anything colder than 40 degrees F (4.5 degrees C) is too cold for mowing.
Mowing the lawn in these temperatures and weather conditions is just too damaging for the grass to continue growing well if it is mowed.
Grass does not grow well in cold temperatures unless it is winter grass that is specifically grown for these purposes.
However, even if your lawn is winter grass, it is still not advisable to bow it after a frost. The collection of ice on the lawn effectively freezes the tips of the blades of grass. If this semi-frozen grass is cut, even with sharp mower blades, it does not cut evenly but rather tears.
This also causes severe damage to the grass, even if it is winter grass.
For this reason, no lawn should be mowed when the temperature outside is cold enough to cause a frost.
Is It Ever Safe To Mow The Lawn After A Frost?
Mowing the lawn after a frost is not safe for any type of grass, and it can cause severe damage to the lawn that is very difficult to overcome. That being said, there are some ways to safely mow a lawn after a frost.
It is safe to cut the lawn after a frost if the lawn was covered. There are those who use lawn covers when there is a forecast of very cold or freezing temperatures, and these coverings prevent the grass from frosting.
Covering the lawn is an excellent way to protect it from extreme cold, and if the grass has been covered, it is safe to mow it after there has been a frost, as the grass has been protected from the worst of the cold.
The safest way to mow the lawn after a frost is to wait for the lawn to entirely defrost and warm up completely. If the lawn is cut while frosted, it will be badly damaged, but allowing the grass to thaw will prevent that.
Mowing the lawn after it has thawed entirely is the same as mowing the lawn in regular conditions and is very unlikely to damage the grass at all.
Be sure that the lawn is dry before mowing, as this may also be a problem for the growth of the grass, especially in cooler weather conditions.
Conclusion
Mowing the lawn is essential for keeping it in good condition and growing well, but mowing the lawn after a frost can cause far more damage than good.
When the lawn is frosted over, or even if it is too cold, it is more damaging to mow the lawn than to leave it be for a while.
Never mow the lawn immediately after a frost, or risk hurting the grass permanently. Rather wait for the grass to thaw, warm up, and completely dry before mowing. At this point, the lawn can be mowed safely without causing any damage.
Look after your lawn, especially in the winter, and it will be flourishing all year round!
References
Recent Posts
All plants have necessary requirements which help them to grow. Without sunlight, water, fresh air, the correct temperature, and essential nutrients, plants would not thrive. Combine these factors...
Keeping a well-manicured lawn and a tidy garden does take hard work and regular maintenance. Having the correct tools to use for the job at hand makes the job easier. Knowing when and how to use the...