Everyone has a different idea of what defines overgrown grass in St Augustine. The technical answer for St Augustine grass is anything more than a third of the desired height. The majority of our clients prefer 4-inches. So, anything over 5.33-inches is overgrown. However, for the purposes of this article, we are referring to grass well over 8-inches.
Problems for the Homeowner
To reduce the stress to the grass, experts recommend removing no more one-third of the blade. If you remove too much of the blade it will shock the grass. When grass is in shock it is weak and susceptible to damage in the form of weeds, pest and disease. People who keep their grass at the recommended height of 3 to 4 inches have a much healthier lawn. Once the grass gets that high, it also becomes a haven for wildlife such as snakes.
Problems for the Neighbors
If a neighbor’s lawn is overgrown and starts to collect diseases, it can spread to your lawn. Also, an unkempt yard will hurt the curb appeal of the whole neighborhood. After all, you might have the nicest yard on the block, but if your neighbor’s yard looks rough, it might leave a sour taste with a potential buyer.
How to Fix Overgrown Grass
After you cut it back to a normal height is high it is going to look horrible. For this reason, we implore you to not allow your yard to become overgrown. Unfortunately, when your grass becomes severely overgrown it is not as simple as just hoping on a commercial mower and cutting down to a normal height. Sometimes you are able to use a mower; however, you have to go extremely slow. With the grass being so tall it creates an extreme amount of stress on the mower, especially the belts which could easily break while mowing. This becomes more challenging in Florida during the rain season, because the grass blades retains the moisture which makes it even harder to cut because the grass will stick under the mower causing it to stall out.
The most common way to start getting the overgrown grass back down to normal condition is to take a string trimmer or weed whacker throughout the entire lawn to get it down to roughly six to eight inches. Once the lawn is down to a more reasonable height you can run a mower across the grass.
After the Initial Overgrown Cut
After you get your lawn down around 4-inches be ready because your grass is going to look horrible. It may have been a beautiful green before you cut it back down to an average height; however, it will no longer have that green color. Your grass will mainly be brown. The St Augustine grass will also be in shock from having so much cut off. It is very important to keep up a proper watering schedule after the initial overgrown cut. It should go without saying that you really should set up a regular schedule to mow your lawn.
The Time and Cost
If you are addressing the overgrown grass yourself plan on spending a lot of time and be sure to wear long pants, boots, long sleeves shirt, safety glasses, and hearing protection. Depending on the size of the lawn you can plan on spending anywhere between four and ten times or more, the normal length of time it takes to mow your lawn.
If you decide to hire a company be ready because it will cost a lot of money. It depends on the height of the St Augustine grass, being able to tell if there are any obstacles in the turf, and obviously the size of the property. To start we will say that a property with overgrown grass will end up costing you at the least, three times the cost of a regular mowing service.
Need to Get an Overgrown Lawn in St Augustine Back in Shape?
If you need to get your lawn back in shape and start regular lawn maintenance ask for a free estimate online, or call Clean Cuts of St Augustine today. We will give you a quote within 2-business days for an overgrown grass in St Augustine.