Should I lower my HOC for Fine Fescue in the winter....

Kentucky bluegrass, Fescue, Rye and Bent, etc
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northeastlawn
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Should I lower my HOC for Fine Fescue in the winter....

Post by northeastlawn » September 23rd, 2020, 10:34 am

I have a few patches of fine fescue street side by a fence that gets mostly shade. After a few years of spring over-seeding its finally thickened up nicely.

I find I need to keep it at 3 1/2" and not fertilize it a lot, but leaving it at 3 1/2" in the fall when it doesn't get a lot of sun has helped it a lot.

But that brings me to my Fall problem; I have read and believe you should lower the HOC to 2 to 2 1/2" to help fight snow mold. This area will get snow piled on it all winter. In the spring the FF seems to really go through a growth spurt over night, but Im not sure if cutting it low hurts it.

Should I cut it down to 2" in October after the first frost when it pauses, or am I better off leaving it at 3 1/2" all winter?

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MorpheusPA
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Re: Should I lower my HOC for Fine Fescue in the winter....

Post by MorpheusPA » September 23rd, 2020, 1:21 pm

Cut it low, but late. Do it the last two or three mows when growth stops to try to avoid the snow mold problem, if that's an issue for you.

Personally? I don't seem to get snow mold while the properties around me might. Why?

I have no idea. Now, in recent years, that's obvious. None of us do. There's been no appreciable lasting snowfall.

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