Can I Get Away With Not Scalping My Bermuda Lawn?

Q: I have a large and beautiful bermuda lawn. I typically scalp it in spring. Can I get away with not scalping? It’s a pretty daunting job at my age.

A: Plenty of bermudagrass lawns go without scalping in spring and they look fine. The only advantage to scalping is that the soil warms more rapidly and the lawn turns green a little earlier in spring. You can start mowing when the lawn is more than 90% green, no scalping necessary.