How Tall to Cut Bermuda - How Short to Cut Lawn

Doc talks about different factors of cutting your lawn different heights. This includes equipment and amount of moisture.

[@mibz1117]

Hey doc, bought a home here in Georgia, moved from san diego on march. house came with 10,000 sq ft of bermuda and didn't know squat about lawn care. late may my lawn was the ugliest on the neighborhood, i searched on youtube about how to take care of bermuda and found you. Now late september is the greenest and thickest lawn, all because of sticking to your advice. I just wanted to say thanks and that yes, you have the best bermuda lawn in the world.

[@mikeystarr775]

Depends on how often you mow. The neighbor who mows at half inch is mowing every other day. The one mowing at 1 inch is mowing twice a week. Scalp in early spring. Gradually raise the mowing height as the spring and summer go on. 1.5 inches by mid May. 2 inches by end of June. 2.5-3 inches by August-September. Taller than 3 inches thins out too much. At 2.5-3 inches, you’re promoting a deep enough root system, and providing a canopy to help shade out the ground from moisture loss and reducing weeds by reducing sunlight. Don’t bag away the clippings. If you’re mowing often enough, the clippings won’t be unsightly, but they’ll recycle the nutrients back to the turf vs throwing away fertilizer. Mow often enough and tall enough so that after you mow, you don’t lose color. Bermuda grows faster in May than in April, faster in June than in May, faster in July than in June, and faster in August than in July...meaning it has to be mowed more often as the summer progresses at least every 4-5 days in July and August.

[@connerhein2868]

Hey Doc, I’ve watched A TON of your videos and I appreciate you making these. As a newbie with a tight budget I have been able to apply a lot of what you have taught. My only idea that I have to add, is I wish you also had a less intense version of lawn care for those who do not have the finances to spend hundreds on their lawn each year. For example it’s not realistic for everyone to pay to have their lawn scalped every year. It would be cool to have videos of lawn care on a budget or at least a more budget friendly or simplistic version of what you do. Thanks!

[@jonathanjones9094]

"Honey, our neighbor is out taking video of how ugly our lawn is again"

[@cottonstarcrimescene]

Moved in the spring from a house where I had thick beautiful St. Augustine grass, to a home and area, that has a Burmuda grass lawn. I’m struggling to get my lawn in shape. Thanks for your vids.

[@edwardwatt3497]

Great video! I'm about to cut my from seed Florida grown Bermuda for the first time. Fingers are crossed but your video gave me confidence to do it the right way.

[@fredriccuthbertson]

Monroe NC...started cutting my lawn at 1.5 in in March..the Bermuda is definitely spreading rapidly...I've fed it a little bit but now temps in the 80s and I will start to feed more and more...it is really starting to take off. New Septic tank drain field is now taken over with Bermuda. Excellent advice...Ariens zero turn limits me to 1.5 inches and will level the lawn next spring to prevent scalping.

[@mattc6268]

Beautiful lawn and thanks for the tips! I have the shortest lawn in the neighborhood. Only one cut properly!

[@RandyMabusedJW]

It also makes a great runway. Loved your video.

[@brandoncampbell3404]

my mower settings makes my mower look like a monster truck. here in Oklahoma I set my mower as high as it will go to shade the soil since it's mostly clay and doesn't hold moisture. my yard stays flawless as long as I mow it on schedule.

[@therealalx4325]

Hey Doc! Great content as always. Have you considered making a video on mower blades? How often do you sharpen your blades? Do you replace them each year? Do you use samurai swords for blades? Lawn care nuts need to know.😅

[@mwilliams2155]

Great video, learned a lot thanks for sharing 👍

[@funkyybuddha]

gorgeous lawn

[@robertharris5171]

I'm not saying I know it all but I've been doing lawns for over 40 years. I'm retired now but I had a lawn service company. On your lawn mower put it one step higher in the front and you will not have it mess up on you. It won't cut into the lower spots. Try it it's always worked for us.

[@jordanhicks5131]

Man Im glad our Bermuda grass can be long here in Arizona without getting diseases. But we have like no humidity for fungi to grow

[@tonymuse]

Beautiful lawn. Have you ever considered having your lawn leveled?

[@valentelopez6353]

Thanks for the information

[@Mac1o24]

I've been wondering why my new beautiful grass has been dying off, I think you just answered my question. I have been cutting too long. I have both issues you showed in your first two examples.

[@robertjones8848]

Hi Doc! Your yard looks great! What type of "feed" do you use on your yard? And what times of year? Thank you sop much!

[@joesandoval7886]

Hey really enjoy your videos , does it matter the horse power of the lawn mower that is being used so does that matter thanks for the videos .

[@CarlosRodriguez-vg2ob]

hi, thank you for your video... i do however i have a question. so im dealing with the same issue as everyone else where my grass is around 2 to maybe even 3 inches long and therefore if i cut it to 1 inch short then everything will be brown. so how long before it gets green again and how often do i need to cut it before is green all the way and every-time i cut it and still be the right length

[@laxwonder]

Hey Doc, great video. I just purchased a house and the Bermuda was consistently cut over 3-4”. Any tips on how to repair it? I didn’t want to go all the way down to 1” on the first cut because that would get rid of all the green.

[@bighern1794]

What do you give your lawn for mold Doc?

[@raymondmarcotte2931]

On a Toro push mower, what height do you reccomend for the mower settings? We have a very well kept bermuda lawn with zero weeds. I am just not sure I am cutting low enough. Thanks!

[@bighern1794]

Damn Doc your grass is beautiful. I just planted my Bermuda this past spring in Albuquerque NM. Mine has a brown tint to it. Maybe it's to long

[@jamesmorales1599]

Doc: do you Mulch or bag . Here in the low desert Palm springs area it dang hot. I have Bermuda grass. I am finding that mulching it keeping it green longer.

[@bigboostable]

i have watched all of your videos....great work! i have learned a lot from just watching your videos. lawn looks great!! Keep up the good work! I'm about to purchase my first reel mower from california standard. Im located in acworth Georgia. My question to you is ....is it to late in the season to cut my lawn at 1 inch and lower? Right now my lawn is at about 3 inches. Pretty sure it will be brown and ugly. But would the lawn green up in time before it goes dormant for the winter?

[@HowTowithDoc]

Watch the summer scalp video. If you do that you need to have water or wait until rain is coming.

[@bhunt919]

Doc whats your take on the new tif tough bermuda we install a lot of that sod and we also cut and I just can not keep it short it is so thick and I'm weekly mowing it and mow it at 3.25 to 3.5. I want it shorter but it will brown it and I'm already spending alot of time blowing the clippings out. Also grass was sodden in early spring started cutting at 2.5 in on a toro 52 in granstand and gradually had to bump the height do spending to much time blowing clippings.

[@johnmiddleton726]

Hey Doc: Looking for some advice. I live in SE North Carolina and I have a Bermuda grass lawn? This year for the first time, I have crab grass. Trying to think ahead, what sort of pre-emergent should I apply in the spring? Thanks

[@danielplainview2360]

"How low can you mow? Death row, what a brother knows Once again, back is the incredible The rhyme animal The uncannable D, Public Enemy Number One"

[@09ThunderOne]

what do you do if the lawn gets scalped? Do I need to wait a while before cutting again?

[@dantheman5102]

Hi Doc, I live in a desert region of Southern California and planted Bermuda grass from seed. It grew in beautifully and I water it every morning with an automatic sprinkler system. Question is, how short would you recommend I keep it? 100 degrees is a typical day. This stuff grows like crazy; I’m cutting it twice a week. My push mower deck set to 2 inches. Thanks for all the advice! Love your videos.

[@HowTowithDoc]

2" for now is fine.

[@obxtarheel9191]

yard at 3:00 looks like the deck on their mower is un even

[@frankwilliams1987]

What fungicide do you recommend.

[@jimccc9467]

How short do you cut it with your trucut now?

[@greginaustinTX]

man I'm just so confused. another guy I watched about bermuda says to use the 1/3 rule and that you don't want to cut it too short (under 3") b/c the actual follage of the plant is where the grass stores it's water, it will be more drought tolerant, etc. so confusing

[@bmakel]

Do you I’ve common or hybrid bermuda?

[@calebreeves3716]

What about a lawn with very thin Bermuda from too much shade? I figured leaving it longer would allow it to receive more sunlight. What do you think?

[@MattD1911]

Time to consider a landscaping in those areas.

[@allenwendling6966]

been mowing it at 3" for years and no issues. I do not water so the soil stays drier I suppose keeping the fungus growth down.

[@HowTowithDoc]

No laws against long Bermuda... or tall white socks with shorts... it's just that somethings just don't look right.

[@HowTowithDoc]

That made no sense... short Bermuda causing fungus? There's something called GOOGLE now. "Begin routine mowing as soon as the grass begins to turn green in the spring. Set the mowing height at 1 to 2 inches for Common bermudagrass and 1/2 to 11/2 inches for hybrid varieties. Remove no more than one-third of the leaf area with any one mowing." publications.tamu.edu/TURF_LANDSCAPE/PUB_turf_Maintaining%20Bermudagrass%20Lawns.pdf

[@allenwendling6966]

Man this guy can’t take others opinion without being defensive. If you are gonna do vlog you won’t keep following with smart responses. I just said I do not have issues at 3” and explained why I thought.

[@HowTowithDoc]

My response was to Digitalbumpin make the statement that SHORT grass causes fungus. It was a stupid opinion that can be answered via google.

[@zombiez8mybrainz]

I have a yard full of Celebration Bermuda (common in North Carolina). I left mine 3+ inches all last season with fertilizer each month through the growing season with no issues at all. The guy that sold me the turf came by one day and almost had a shit fit because I let it grow so long. 3+ inch Bermuda feels great on bare feet I told him. He said cut that back this winter to 1 inch and let it be through Spring, and it will thicken up more (turf is less than one year old). I just finished cutting it down to 1 inch yesterday (tons of clippings) so I guess we will see what happens, hopefully it won't die.

[@stephenmurphey1935]

So what would you recommend if my grass had been mowed at a higher 3+ inch height for some time and there was a lot of dead brown stems underneath all the top greenery? I chopped it all down closer to the 1-1/2 inch length, but now my yard looks dead because of all the brown underneath the top green. We've also has around 7 inches of rain in the last 4 days. Is my lawn just done for the summer? Or will it come back some?

[@HowTowithDoc]

The summer scalp... spray super juice... give it 10 days and then thank me.

[@stephenmurphey1935]

How To with Doc I'll give it a whirl! Would you recommend a good raking over the grass to break up any dead spots or matted down spot from all the heavy rain, before applying a grass feed? Thanks!

[@HowTowithDoc]

Sure... why not. But not a must.

[@MikeRP3147]

Very nice lawn.. it might be time for you to pick up a gas powered reel mower

[@LL-fb8wz]

How do you keep all the different crabgrass from coming up in there?

[@brianm7402]

Best to use a pre-emergent before the growing season, but if you didn't do that, Quinclorac will knock it out. Or you can buy something like Ortho weed be gone with crab grass killer that contains Quinclorac from the big box stores.

[@tonyeaton671]

When I cut my sod it gets brown

[@cottonstarcrimescene]

Why does Burmuda look so great short?

[@johnwallace4408]

#1 mistake most people make when cutting their lawns is, they cut too fast. Slow down and give the mower deck time to LEVEL ITSELF!!!!!

[@SeanHopwood1]

what's a mower deck?

[@simon270490]

Thank you for this information. I did pay attention in my first time. I felt that there was a bit difference between fast and slow mowing.

[@JamieStockman]

Doc, quick question from a new resident to Georgia (Atlanta area). We've recently moved to the area and our home has Bermuda in the front, Zoysia in the back. The prior owner let the Bermuda go too high (4 inches or worse) and it's leggy, spotty, etc. What's the best way to start to tackle the issues so that by this time next year I have something that looks more like yours? :)

[@HowTowithDoc]

Video coming soon... cut it down little by little. Feed it... water it... Reduced cutting will be ugly for a few weeks. next year you will be a Bermuda God and the mortals will all worship you.

[@JamieStockman]

Love it. Thank you!

[@ask4tech]

My bermuda LOVES to be around 2" long and performs better than others that cut low.

[@cranstjs]

Good video. Hey you can be the twin brother of JK Simmons.

[@typ8723]

I reel mine sub 1"

[@AdamCanFly]

You should get a robo mower! I’m sitting here watching mine mow while I watch KZbin videos. I think it’s ideal for lawn health.

[@DoyleHargraves]

I showed this video to my wife, and she promised to stop telling people that I am a nut-bag about my grass.

[@HowTowithDoc]

Marriage counseling is free........... you're welcome.

[@DoyleHargraves]

@@HowTowithDoc are you a fan of MSMA herbicide?

[@HowTowithDoc]

I was when it was legal.

[@DoyleHargraves]

@@HowTowithDoc If you did have some, how would you apply it? Asking for a friend.

[@TInyK12]

Sorry but the average homeowner didn’t have the time or money to cut Bermuda that often