“Can I mow wet grass?”
It’s a question that I’m commonly asked, and the short answer is, ‘yes, technically you can mow wet grass.’ However, the answer isn’t as simple as a yes or no, and like most things in life and lawn mowing, the answer is slightly more nuanced. Generally speaking, if you can avoid it, try not to cut wet grass as in my opinion, the risks far outweigh the benefits.
See also: The Best Push Mowers for the Money
4 Reasons You Shouldn’t Mow Wet Grass
There are a number of downsides when it comes to mowing grass when it’s wet, which we’ll dive into here.
1 – Mowing wet grass increases risk of personal injury
Lawn mower injuries are nothing to joke about. In fact, lawn mowers are the leading cause of amputation in the United States, and send 13 children to the hospital daily according to Science Daily.
Mowing the grass when wet, especially on hills or slippery areas increases risk of injury plain and simple no matter how careful you may be. So you need to ask yourself, ‘is it really worth cutting off my toe to have my grass cut sooner?’
2 – Mowing when wet can lead to ruts in your yard
If it has been raining for a decent amount of time and your soil is saturated with water, there’s a good chance the weight of a lawn mower will create ruts or grooves in the yard. This is especially true with riding lawn mowers.
These ruts are incredibly difficult to repair, and they do not go away on their own. Typically you need to fill them with topsoil and plant new seed or sod to level out your lawn once again. Again, the benefit of getting your lawn cut a day sooner isn’t really worth it.
3 – Mowing a wet lawn leads to grass clumping
It’s well-known and proven in the turfgrass management industry that mulching grass clippings is superior to bagging the clippings. Grass clippings provide nutrients to your soil when mulched, and sit in a landfill when bagged. Not great for your yard or the environment.
While that may be proven, there is still a myth out there that mulching grass clippings means you can mow wet grass with ease. The University of Arizona cooperative extension has this to say about that myth:
Another false statement. While mulching mowers will leave less clippings behind on wet grass, it is an unwise practice to do so. The underside of the deck will “clump up” very quickly. This negates the air-deck aerodynamics which are necessary for proper mulching.
Source: University of Arizona Cooperative Extension
Mowing while wet leads to clumping, which leads to big moist blobs of grass all over your yard. These are not only ugly, but can cause mold to grow. Also, you’ll constantly have to clean the underside of your mower deck.
Thinking about bagging clippings while wet? Good luck with that. You’ll not only be bagging the weight of the grass but a TON of water weight. That amounts to a heavy stinky mess.
4 – Mowing wet grass leads to a worse cut
When the mower blade cuts wet grass, it doesn’t cut the blades nearly as cleanly. This may seem trivial, but it can actually lead to weaker grass and lawn disease.
When is it ok to mow a wet lawn?
Hopefully, we’ve convinced you to be patient, and only mow a lawn when the grass is dry. There are a couple of exceptions to the rule.
First, if the lawn isn’t all that saturated. Morning dew or a light sprinkling is probably going to be ok. Just make sure you are mowing slowly, wearing boots (no tennis shoes), and are extremely careful.
Secondly, if you live in a climate where it constantly rains, but lightly. Think Seattle or Florida during the summer. The reality here is that you’re never going to escape rain, and you probably can’t wait for it to completely dry out. However, in these climates it usually doesn’t rain heavily enough to saturate the soil, so you’re probably fine.
If you must cut grass when wet…
Hopefully I’ve convinced you that mowing wet grass is a bad idea. It’s dangerous, causes clumping, leaves ruts and leads to a bad cut.
However, sometimes real life gets in the way and you simply have to mow when wet. The Lawn Care Nut put together a great video below giving a few tips on mowing wet grass.
Tips on mowing a wet lawn:
- No Lawn Striping: Striping is purely for aesthetics anyway, so shouldn’t be an issue for you.
- Raise Your Mower Deck: If you were mowing at 3 inches, move it up to 4 inches
- Overlap Stripes by 50%: Most people don’t overlap their stripes at all. When mowing grass, only take off a chunk half the width of the mower deck. This will reduce clumping.
- Stay Off of Driveways and Sidewalks: The wet clumps will get on your hard areas and cause stains.
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