Regular mower maintenance is essential to achieve the best possible quality of cut. Dull mowers tear and fray leaf tissue, severely wounding the plant and resulting in formation of frayed and necrotic leaf tips. The objective of this study was to develop general guidelines to determine how frequently reel-type mowers should be sharpened to maintain high quality of cut. Mowers were sharpened once by using single-blade carbide milling, cylindrical grind, and cylindrical with back grind processes. Three mowers were sharpened by using each sharpening process. Each mower was used to cut approximately 0.2-0.4 ha of ‘L-93' creeping bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera L.) every week for 12 weeks at Cold Water Golf Links (Ames, IA). Control mowers were sharpened after mowing every 0.35 ha of grass by using the cylindrical with back grind process. Creeping bentgrass was mowed at a height of 1.3 cm. Measurements of leaf tip damage and photosynthetic yield were made weekly. Determinations of chlorophyll and carbohydrate concentrations were made biweekly. Leaf tip damage was as much as 82% greater in grasses cut with cylindrical grind sharpened mowers compared to grasses cut with regularly sharpened control mowers. Photosynthetic yield was as much as 15% greater in grasses cut with regularly sharpened mowers compared to grasses cut with mowers sharpened by using the cylindrical grind process.
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