How to mow stripes in your lawn

A neatly striped lawn speaks volumes about the person living in a property. Not only that, it’s fun to do. It takes a bit of practice but leaves you with a sense of satisfaction. In this blog Robbie Lynn of Premier Lawns shows you how to mow stripes in your lawn.

Before you start

You will need a lawnmower with a rear roller attachment. It’s the roller that bends the grass in order to make the stripes.  Make sure the blades are clean and sharp. Blunt blades tear at the grass and give a substandard finish. Choose a time when the grass is fairly dry and you feel relaxed. If this is your first attempt to mow stripes in your lawn you’ll need to concentrate without getting frustrated. Trim the lawn edges. It’s a simple job but it really does make a difference to the overall effect.

Trimming the edges of your lawn before you start mowing give it a crisp, professional finish. This type of edging tool is easy to use The image shown is NOT one of Premier Lawns customers

First of all, mow yourself a turning strip

Mow two widths of the mower around the lawn, in opposite directions. This will give you a nice border to frame your stripes and for you to turn around on at the end of each “run”. Pro tip – Go over the same stripes once you finish too.

Find a straight edge

Assuming that you are going to mow straight lines, decide which direction you want them to run and then try to find a straight edge to orientate yourself with.  Depending on the shape of your lawn, that’s not always possible. I find that a path or a patio is a great help.

An example of Premier Lawns grass cutting service. This is a striped lawn in Newtownabbey

No straight edge? Try this trick

If you have a beautiful curvy lawn or it’s not quite straight, my tip is this. Stand with your mower poised at the edge of the lawn. Fix your gaze onto an object on the other side of the lawn where you want the stripe to end. Perhaps a particular plant, a fence post or a marker placed in the hedge. Don’t pick something too far away, keep it close to the edge of the lawn.

Mow the first stripe in your lawn

Now start mowing. Walk at a nice even pace keeping your eye fixed on your marker. Don’t turn your head left or right because your body naturally follows your head and you’ll end up with a wiggly stripe. Keep going until you reach the end. Now you have your first stripe. If it’s wonky or bendy, take a breath and cut a new line. Following a wonky line will get more pronounced at each cut.

Making more stripes

Your second stripe needs to be beside the first one and you must mow in the opposite direction. So if the first stripe is left to right, the next one needs to be right to left. This time, your challenge is to keep the width of each stripe the same as its neighbours. Use the first stripe as a guide, line the front corner of the mower up with the edge of the stripe and away you go. Keep mowing up and down until the whole lawn is complete. Then mow all around the edge again to give a neat, professional finish. Mowing little and often with the same stripes in the same direction will “train” the grass to stay stripy for longer. If you want that extra special finish I recommend double cutting. This gives really rich green stripes that stand out.

This is a lawn in Malone, Belfast that we maintain, this was the first cut after spring scarification, there are some small scare marks still on the lawn

 

Do you need help to mow stripes on your lawn?

I’ve been working on golf courses and with garden lawns for over 25 years and I can promise you that it takes practice and patience to mow stripes in your lawn. But it’s definitely worth it. If you need help to mow stripes in your lawn, please get in touch. Contact Premier Lawns NI for help to mow stripes in your lawn

More articles about lawns and lawn stripes

Managing curved or circular lawns Examples of stripey lawns cultivated by Robbie of Premier Lawns NI Tidying an overgrown lawn in Newtownabbey