The Handyguys interview Mike Ballou,  product Manager for John Deere, and discuss mower maintenance and the best way to care for your lawn.

Mower Maintenance

Proper mower maintenance is critical for having a healthy, green  lawn.  Do not begin this new mowing season without changing the oil, sharpening your blades, lubing the joints and checking filters and spark plugs.  Your mower manual will provide all the details you need for proper mower maintenance.

Mike provides detailed instructions on:

• Mowing height


• Blade sharpening and extra blades


• Removing a deck from your lawn tractor


• Mulching vs bagging


• Mulching blades vs bagging blades vs all-purpose blades


• Adjusting the mower deck wheels on your riding mower deck for best cut (this is very interesting)

There is some good material here that the Handyguys have not covered previously. Check out the full podcast and start your lawn off on the right track this mowing season.

Mowing height

Mike’s suggestion to mow your grass is a good one. Set the height to one of the highest settings. This will help prevent disease, crowd out weeds, reduce watering and your lawn will look fuller all season long.

Blade sharpening and extra blades

We have been longtime advocates of using sharp blades. Mike provides another great tip. Buy an extra set of blades. If you have your blades professionally sharpened, you can just swap on your sharp blades while you wait for your dealer to sharpen the dull ones.

Mulching vs bagging

Mulching is always preferable to bagging. The clippings add water and nutrients back into your lawn. The only time you shouldn’t mulch is if you have waited too long between mows and have extra tall grass.

When to mow

You should only remove about 1/3 of your blade height at one time. This will allow the mulching to work properly and will not stress your grass too much.

Blade Sharpening Video

You may also want to check out the video we did a while back on how to sharpen and balance your mower blade.

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