Football Pitch FAQ 3. What height should we cut our pitch once the seed has germinated?

Football Pitch FAQ 3. What height should we cut our pitch once the seed has germinated? advert image shown if present

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If germination is good, with the first leaves being seen within 7-days, and establishment continues to a good level then somewhere between 2 and 3 weeks should see a good green tinge to the previously thinner and bare areas of the pitch. The roots will be anchoring well to the soil and should be strong enough to withstand a mowing around the 3 weeks mark, but it might be just before or up to another week afterwards.

Depending on the extent of established grass that was retained during renovation, the pitch may need to be cut before the new seed has become well established. This isn’t a problem, but just make sure that the cut height is at least 50mm.

Try and plan it so that as the new seedlings are approaching the 50mm height, aim to not mow again until ideally the grass has reached nearer 60mm as this will increase the rooting strength of new seedlings, reducing the potential for them to be tugged out during their first mowing. For the established grass this isn’t an issue.

Keep the mower setting as 50mm so that at most 10mm is removed from the first cut (so some 20% of leaf being removed) and the clippings can usually be let fly and lightly drag brushed into the base of the sward if any clumping of the cut grass occurs.

Whilst the 'one-third rule' is suitable for established turf, seedling and young turf is still developing so removing slightly less each cut might contribute to developing a healthier and stronger sward more quickly.

If a rotary mower is used then this will also reduce the likelihood of any of the young grass being tugged out, which is more likely to occur if a cylinder mower is used. If the height of cut is kept at 50mm for the first 3 cuts this will help with root development and sward thickening. Be cautious about lowering the height of cut too soon as this will negatively impact on root development, especially during the drier summer period.

As you start to lower the height of cut you will need to also start to increase the frequency of cut to ensure that not too much is taken off in a single mowing session.