How often should a robotic lawnmower mow?

There is no doubt that a robotic mower helps make lawn mowing . Once programmed, the little garden helper tirelessly makes its rounds.  You may   have to do a little work tidying up the lawn edges and occasionally fertilize. However, in order for the cutting results to be most advantageous and to allow your lawn to thrive healthily and densely, the right cutting interval is essential. Therefore, at some point, all robotic lawnmower owners ask themselves how often a robotic lawnmower should, in fact, be in use.

Optimal cutting results through daily lawn cutting

Unlike a conventional lawn mower, which is usually used about once a week, a robotic lawnmower is designed to actually generate optimal  lawn conditions when it mows daily. This helps to minimize  weeds and produce green, lush results.

Despite that, cutting intervals also depend on the weather and season. When it is especially hot and dry weather, it  makes sense to mow the lawn every other day, so that the slightly longer blades of grass can shade the lawn. In winter, on the other hand, the lawn lies dormant giving the robotic lawnmower a well-earned winter break. When it rains, we recommend not mowing the lawn. Conversely, it grows particularly quickly in the spring and should thus be trimmed daily.

There is no universal rule

Whether a lawn should really be cut daily or perhaps every two days is not set in stone. Experts are not united with this question. Manufacturers also provide information on the recommended frequency of how often the robotic lawnmower should make its rounds. These are usually based on tests and can serve as a good benchmark. Ultimately, however, there is no harm in simply experimenting to determine the ideal cutting interval for your own lawn.

Frequent mowing for fine mulch

A robotic lawnmower does not have a grass collector like other riding or walk behind mowers but simply displaces the clippings directly back onto the surface. Here they decompose and naturally add fertilizer to the soil. However, this process only works properly if the grass clippings are shredded very fine and decompose quickly. Otherwise, grass blades could hinder the aeration of the lawn possibly resulting in mold and fungi.

Mowing the lawn after a break

Lawns tend to grow longer than average after periods of rain or vacations. Nevertheless, the next time the robotic lawnmower is used, it should not be cut back radically. The 1/3 rule applies here. Otherwise, you could harm your lawn causing brown spots to appear, or in the worst case, death of the lawn. The same applies to young lawns. If the average height is around of 8-10 cm, we suggest using a height of about 6 cm (according to the 1/3 rule).

If the lawn is cut back to a greater extent, it should be noted that the tips of the stalks are significantly longer than the usual mulch. For that reason, clippings should be collected so that the lawn is not damaged.

The duration of lawn mowing

In most cases, a robotic mower travels across the lawn in a crisscross pattern. This means that the device does not drive over every spot with the same frequency. Accordingly, the mowing time should be sufficiently long in order for the garden helper to really trim the yard.

The required mowing time depends on the area output of the device: an indication of how many square meters the robotic lawnmower can mow under ideal conditions. However, angled corners and obstacles sometimes significantly reduce  this peak value. It also makes sense to give the device a break at night, for example, so that mowing times are further reduced   For maximum performance, it is advisable to use a robotic mower with a sufficient buffer in terms of area output.

Calculate mowing time

Let's assume the robotic mower has a maximum area output of 3,000 m². The garden is 1,000 m² and the device can be in use 24 hours a day. The calculation is as follows:

24 hrs / (3,000 m² / 1,000 m²) = 8 hrs. 

In the above, example, to mow the area completely, the robotic lawnmower needs 8 hours of pure mowing time. Don’t forget to calculate extra time your mower will need at its charging station. If, on the other hand, you only plan to have the mower in use every other day, then the daily mowing time is reduced to 4 hours. It is also clear that the mowing time is shortened if you choose a robotic lawnmower whose area output is significantly greater than the actual lawn area.

Regular mowing is not everything

The best robotic mower is of no use if lawn care is neglected in addition to mowing. Thus, although the useful garden helper makes the work much easier, it is important to continue to fertilize regularly and, if necessary, to scarify in the spring. Then there is hardly anything