How To Make Ticks Hate Your Yard With A Lawn Mower

After working or playing outside, finding a tick crawling on you creates an instant feeling of panic over the potential for any number of serious illnesses it might transmit. While thorough checks are crucial after outdoor activity, avoiding contact with ticks is the best prevention against bites and the harmful diseases they can carry. If you keep discovering these vectors in your own yard, your lawn mower could actually help to drive them away. Ticks love to live in tall grass, where they climb to the ends of long blades and latch onto hosts as they brush past, an action called questing. By mowing your lawn regularly and keeping the grass on the shorter side, you may make your property less attractive and help keep ticks out of your yard.

Part of the reason tall grass is so attractive to ticks is the shade it provides. Ticks prefer to keep cool, and tall grass allows them to hide from the hot summer sun. Additionally, ticks require a more humid environment, so longer grass will help to make the lawn a little more comfortable by slowing evaporation. This is why ticks usually stay close to the ground rather than climb to higher areas. With short-cut grass creating sunnier, less humid conditions, ticks are not as likely to thrive. Though your lawn mower won't directly kill ticks, it'll make them dislike your yard, encouraging the pests to settle elsewhere.

Simply cutting your grass is a straightforward and natural solution to help keep ticks out of your yard. Try to mow often, so that your lawn doesn't have a chance to become long. For people with larger properties, focus on keeping the grass short in the spots where you spend the most time. 

Though mowing your yard creates a more hostile environment for ticks, it's crucial to pick up the grass clippings. Leaf litter and grass clippings offer more shade and places to hide, so bag and remove them to keep your yard clear. If you can't bag them, try to spread the cut grass thinly across the lawn to prevent thick clumps that might create a moist, sheltered area.

Ticks are a common occurrence in yards that border the woods. Besides mowing, consider relocating any seating areas or children's play equipment away from the edge of the lawn. This keeps the places where you spend the most time separated from areas where ticks are more likely to live. Adding a wide border around the perimeter where the yard meets taller landscaping features or a forest's edge may also help protect your manicured lawn from any unwanted pests. Wood chips are a common mulching material to help keep ticks out, but you can also make the border from gravel or bark mulch.