Lawn Care
The Right Mowing Height for Bermuda Grass in Southeast Oklahoma
Published August 4, 2026
Cutting too short is the single most common reason McAlester lawns thin out by mid-July. Here is the height range to hold, and why.
Bermuda is the workhorse grass across McAlester and the surrounding towns. It loves heat, recovers from traffic, and fills in bare spots on its own. What it does not tolerate is being scalped week after week.
For a standard home lawn, hold bermuda between one and two inches through the growing season. Taller blades shade the soil, which keeps root-zone temperature down and slows weed germination. Scalped turf bakes, dries out, and hands crabgrass an open invitation.
The other half of the rule: never remove more than a third of the blade in one cut. If the lawn got ahead of you, drop it in two passes a few days apart instead of one aggressive cut.
Sharp blades matter just as much as height. A dull blade tears the leaf tip, which browns off and makes an otherwise healthy lawn look stressed from the curb.