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Mowing the lawn is a common maintenance activity. However, the weather can suddenly change from sunny to rainy. When this happens, should you continue to mow the lawn? Some people believe it is okay while others are clearly against mowing in the rain. Here, we’ll discuss the pros and cons of mowing while it’s still raining.
First, let’s find out why some people think that mowing even under the rain is acceptable. For one, they argue that professional landscapers have no problems with mowing even when the lawn is wet. Second, there isn’t much of a choice when it’s the rainy season.
Third, some individuals argue that mowing wet grass itself does not cause damage. Fourth, mowing during rain can be safely done if you will do it with extra care. If you can keep your mower from clogging and your mower blades from being damaged, you should be able to mow the lawn with no worries.
Still, the most common position to take on this issue is that mowing while it’s raining is a bad idea. After all, it’s best to mow the lawn when the grass is dry and upright. When the grass is wet, it tends to bend over. Also, wet grass tends to get stuck on the blades. In this state, it will be hard for the mower to create quick straight cuts.
In addition, the wet grass clippings that will come out after mowing the lawn will group together with each other. Worse, these clumps could enter your mower and clog it. Specifically, the undercarriage of the mower will be surrounded by sticky, wet grass. The stuck grass will affect the mower blades and reduce their rotation speed. You’ll be spending a long time mowing the lawn while it’s raining.
If you are using a riding lawnmower, the wet surface can be quite dangerous. Traction will be problematic, and you could fall down as the lawnmower slips. Moreover, the wet grass will stain and stick to your clothes much longer than if they were dry.
Likewise, the soil soaked in water is a bad terrain for a mower. The grass won’t be cut equally and there will be unsightly holes left in the ground because the mower wheels not only pull up the grass but also its roots.
And problem will arise when you use mulching blades with your mower. These mulching blades are designed to grab the cut grass and split them further into smaller pieces. However, this is only likely when the grass is dry.
When the grass is wet, the cut grasses clump together – making it difficult to mulch them. These clumps of wet grass can negatively affect the grass by covering and suffocating them. Within a week or even just several days, your lawn could develop dead patches.
When the lawn is extremely wet, the grass significantly bends down. If the soil is soaked way beyond the depth where the roots of the grass lie, the mower wheels can move sideways and leave ruts along the way. In this state, making clean and straight cuts on the grass is highly unlikely. Furthermore, mowing at this time could lead to soil compaction and the proliferation of plant diseases.
On the other hand, grass that is moderately wet can still be mowed but must be done with extra caution. For one, you need to place the cutting height a bit higher than usual due to the moisture. Instead of cutting a third of the grass blade height, you should cut less than that since the grass is wet. You also have to decrease the blade speed of your mower. This prevents any clumps of grass clippings from forming and clogging the machine.
In conclusion, you should not mow your lawn in the rain if you want the operation to be smooth and quick. The wetness of both the grass and the soil can hamper the performance of your mower. But if you have no other choice but to mow the lawn while it’s raining, you must do it slowly and with the necessary adjustments applied.
We hope that this article helped you understand why mowing the lawn during the rain isn’t exactly a good idea. If you have any questions, do give us a comment.
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