Doing lawn care and landscaping is challenging but gratifying once you have the best lawn appearance on the street. However, it takes some preparation, and you must do things a certain way for the best effect. On one side, you have watering and fertilizing; on the other, you control the height of your grass.
But, do you edge before or after mowing? Most homeowners typically mow first to complete the bulk of the job, leaving edging for later as one of the final dressing-up steps after they blow away all the cuttings. Edging driveways will be carried out first to catch those clippings if mulching or bagging grass clippings are the intended outcome.
Everyone knows that maintaining the neighborhood’s most fabulous yard and driveways requires regular mowing and edging. But if you’re new to landscaping and have never edged or mowed before, you may wonder if it matters if you mow or edge first.
With mowing and edging, there is no “correct” order. However, it’s a good idea to mow the lawn before edging it because doing so cleans up most of the lawn and can make it easier to see. In our guide, if you are doing your own lawn and wondering which is best to do first, then you can learn all you need here.
By the end, not only will you get tips and tricks about do you trim before cutting grass, or should you edge or mow first. You’ll get some of the best equipment to offer the best edging and how much time you can save when you follow the proper steps. (Read Why Are My Sunflower Leaves Turning Yellow)
What Is The Right Approach For Mowing And Edging
With the order of your regular lawn care routine, there is no “correct” approach. Mowing first, then edging, is a sensible approach with a noticeable advantage. The lawn is first cleaned up by mowing, which also makes the lawn’s edges more noticeable.
You won’t have to guess where the lawn borders the driveway, sidewalk, or walkway when it comes time to edge; you’ll be able to see it plainly because you initially cut down the bulk of the grass.
Where the lawn is severely overgrown, this procedure can be beneficial. It will be more challenging to see the lawn’s edge as the grass grows taller. When trying to edge tall grass, the probability of making an inaccurate cut and ruining the flawlessly manicured appearance you’re striving for increases.
What Is The Purpose Of Edging A Lawn?
If you’re new to lawn maintenance, you might not fully understand the purpose of edging. The purpose of edging a lawn is to keep control over grass growth and make it a tidy, clean appearance.
The grass is prevented from growing in unintended places when you trim the edges, such as growing too long and spilling over the edge of the lawn area onto the driveway or sidewalk.
You should edge your lawn carefully because many homeowners don’t take the time to do so. Making your lawn stand out is easy with edging.
Should I Edge Every Time I Mow?
Every time you mow, you don’t need to edge. Depending on the time of year and how frequently you opt to mow, the lawn might not require edging every time.
Simply evaluate the state of your lawn while you mow to decide whether it needs edging. You should edge the grass if it is visibly spreading across nearby surfaces.
However, it can be good practice to edge each time you mow. By doing this, your lawn will continue to have the sharp edge that distinguishes a well-kept lawn.
How Do I Mow Like Professional Lawn Care?
Although we’ve talked a lot about keeping a crisp edge on your lawn, yet mowing is as crucial to your lawn care regimen as edging. The following advice will help you mow like a pro:
Safety First
Putting safety first is the first step towards mowing like a pro. Wearing safety glasses and closed-toe shoes is therefore necessary.
Eye protection is essential because rocks, mud, and other particles might fly up while mowing. Also, mowing can be dangerous for your feet, which is why you should wear protective footwear. (Read St Augustine Grass Runners)
Never Cut Wet Grass
Always cut your lawn when the grass blades are completely dry for the best results.
This means letting the morning dew has dried up before beginning. As opposed to cutting wet grass, this will produce better results.
Wet grass will fall over, so your mower blade can miss them or clogs with debris under the mower deck. Also, the wet grass is pulled from the soil by the roots rather than leaving a fine cut.
Maintain Sharp Mower Blades
Do you detest making several attempts? That is what you must do when your blades are dull. Your mower will miss fewer stray grass blades. The grass may recover quicker from sharper blades, making cleaner cuts.
Spending the time to sharpen your blade pays off when you come to mow your lawn and collect clippings.
Alternate Mowing Direction
Plan your pattern before you begin. To make sure your plan is completed flawlessly, map out the path you intend to take. Then, change up the pattern every time you mow to give your lawn the most pleasing appearance.
This will prevent the grass from matting down from repeated mowing in the same direction in any one direction. It will prevent noticeable wheel prints on the grass, giving your lawn a tidy, uniform appearance.
Your grass will lean in specific directions if you develop a routine. Such as cutting the grass from front to back in the front yard, from left to right along the back fence, or starting at the driveway and working your way across the property line.
Set Your Lawn Mower To Your Grass Height
It’s crucial to adjust the mower to the proper height. Every time you mow the lawn, ensure the grass is cut to 3 inches. This is the ideal mowing height for the sake of both the grass blades and the roots. This can show that the mower deck is set to the highest position.
Make sure the mower deck is 3 inches high by putting a ruler down into the grass and measuring from the base of the grass blades.
Take Your Time
Take your time, mainly if you are inexperienced. It will yield out severely if you approach it like a race. Try to view mowing the lawn as an opportunity to really make your yard look its best rather than a tedious duty.
How To Edge Your Own Lawn Like A Pro?
More can be done to enhance the appearance of your lawn beyond a good lawn mowing job. As already noted, edging the lawn improves it when you mow regularly. (Read Bermuda Vs Centipede Grass)
Here are a few tips to help edge like a pro:
Safety First
The first step in edging like an expert is clothing appropriately, much like mowing. Long pants should be worn with closed-toe shoes and safety eyewear. Long pants are essential to protect your legs because edgers can hurl various debris at high speed.
Take It Slow
With edging, going slowly is even more crucial. Mistakes made when mowing typically go unnoticed but edging may not be as forgiving. You can essentially “keep ahead of the edger” by moving slowly. Be sure to ensure slowly and deliberately, including your feet.
Control Your String Trimmer
Don’t allow the string trimmers to take control; you must maintain control over it.
Some edgers, particularly ones used for weed whacking around the garden, and are gas-powered, can be rather hefty, and it is easy for them to spin out of control, producing sloppy cuts.
Edge Your Lawns At 90 Degrees
The best benefits for your lawn’s appearance and the health of the grass come from edging it at a 90-degree angle perpendicular to the ground instead of giving it a tapered edge.
A string trimmer is the only edger that allows you to accomplish anything other than a vertical cut; this tip only applies if you use one to edge your lawn.
Don’t Walk On Your Grass
Making a clean cut along the lawn’s edge is the leading precision of edging. Stand on the nearby surface to improve your view of the border between the grass and other areas such as your driveway etc.
You’ll have a more challenging time figuring out where the grass and dirt join the adjacent concrete if you stand on the grass.
Should I Edge My Lawn First?
Edging gives your lawn clean lines, but that’s only one benefit. When you edge the lawn before you mow, the lawnmower will chop up the clippings and dump them in the grass. However, the wind will carry away some clippings, reducing cleanup.
Your driveway and front sidewalk are the first things you and guests see when they visit. You don’t want your guests or neighbors to assume they’re in the forest. Your trimmer will leave grass clippings on the sidewalk and driveway.
So, do this first, as after you use your lawnmower, there’s still the matter of cleanup from grass blades that fall onto your driveways as you trim your grass. While it doesn’t matter too much, you’ll still find many who say the answer is to edge your lawn using your trimmer and then mow the lawn.
Should I Trim My Lawn After Edging?
Your friendly weed whacker is the tool with a heavy-duty fishing line that spins on its head and decimates anything organic in its path, including your shin, if you’re not careful.
We use this around trees and other plants because the lawnmower’s body stops the blade from reaching such areas. By doing this prior to mowing, you may maneuver your mower more easily around the tree or other impediments.
Additionally, it means that you can mow over the edger clippings and finely chop the cut grass from overgrown lawns.
Even more so with edging. When a lawn is overgrown, and the edging is gone, the grass in the driveway isn’t very tall, so mowing it won’t help. The first edge, finish trimming, and then mow the garden.
Overgrown edges yield more grass clippings and soil, which is all the more reason to undertake some of the cleanups with your lawnmower, as this is something you can’t do if you don’t edge first.
Mowing, Edging, and Trimming Tools & Equipment
We debate gas vs. electric string trimmer, edger, and mower. Never use your trimmer as an edger. This blade is vital because it offers a straight, clean cut for yard edges. Most trimmers employ a thick plastic rope-like line that, when spun fast, cuts grass as ruthlessly as a metal blade.
Many trimmers have a turning trimmer head that allows the string plane to go from horizontal to vertical for edging. This won’t give you clean, straight-up-and-down lawn edges. So, it is best to use a dedicated edger to get the best results.
Gas vs. Electric
Gas engines in lawn care are usually two-stroke engines that require a precise blend of gas and oil; get this wrong, the engine may not run while trimming.
However, their power is unmatched, yet they’re loud and polluting and need more maintenance. Electric motors in lawn care tools are quieter, and while they spin the blades or swing the string, you’ll need to worry about where the electricity comes from. (Read Can You Mix Bermuda Grass With St Augustine)
You can use a good deal of extension cords in a large yard or a cordless trimmer with a rechargeable battery. A cord will follow you around the yard, and a battery might be heavy and will ultimately run out of power.
