Question About Seeding

[LawnRunner]

Last fall I seeded several lawns and it took longer than usual for the seed to germinate (dry conditions). After about three weeks the existing grass really became overgrown. I held off mowing until the new grass became about 3" high.

The reason I held off on mowing was because I thought it would not be good to disturb the seed. Some customers complained about how shaggy their lawns looked, but I still held off on the mowing.

Would you guys have held off on the mowing or would you have gone ahead and mowed before the new grass started coming in?

I appreciate your comments.

[Runner]

You mow when the grass gets high enough. Yes, there is concern about trafficking over new seedlings, but for the one cut a week, the trafficking is outweighed by the benefits of proper cultural practice. Aniother thing to consider, is that if the grass is that long, yo9 are blocking necessary sunlight from new seedlings and still viable seed, anyway.

[handzel05]

It was probably a somewhat good idea to hold off although, next time go ahead and mow the yard because it will allow the sun to reach the new seedlings and to allow the grass to become more thicker and less shaggy looking. Once it gets to be shaggy, the root system wont be thick enough, instead the roots would be thin and therefore the grass would be thin. And once that happens, you are allowing your grass to become a target for disease. The more thicker the grass, the less likely you'll see weeds.

[mdlwn1]

Runner said it all...you only should hold off if the ground is wet/bare dirt.