Clippings: A lawn’s best friend

While it might have been a chore most would have liked to avoid when they were kids or teenagers, for adult lawncare enthusiasts mowing the lawn can be enjoyable.

An afternoon spent mowing the lawn can be good exercise and a way to catch a few rays. Of course, once the job is done, what to do with the grass clippings?

Yard waste is actually a valuable commodity, one that can help homeowners save money if used correctly.

Clippings Benefit a Yard

When returned to the yard, grass clippings can pay numerous dividends. First, grass clippings can help homeowners save money on fertilizer. Clippings contain valuable levels of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, and can help cut fertilizer needs by up to 25 percent. Also, clippings work as a food source for bacteria in the soil. One of the things bacteria does is decompose harmful and unsightly thatch, improving the lawn’s health and increasing its aesthetic appeal.

How Much to Use

If you’re returning clippings to your yard, you’ll need to make adjustments to your mower and your mowing schedule.

While some homeowners would like to set their blades as low as possible to reduce the number of times they’ll have to mow the lawn, this is not healthy for your yard.

Mow grass tall with a sharp blade so that no more than 1 inch of grass is removed each time the lawn is cut.

If you set the blades too low, clippings will pile up and this will damage the yard. Also, cutting grass too low does not encourage root growth and promotes inefficient use of water.

When grass is cut at the correct height, roots grow more extensively, which helps make the yard more resistant to drought. During the season of rapid growth (typically spring), you might need to mow twice per week.

This won’t be as hard as it sounds. If a lawn is mowed properly at the correct height, the job doesn’t take much time. As the lawn begins to grow less rapidly, you can return to the typical cutting schedule.

Mulching Mowers Help

Mulching mowers can be of tremendous assistance to anyone looking to get more out of their clippings. A mulching mower works by cutting clippings into smaller pieces and dispersing them back into the yard as you’re cutting the lawn.

Keeping the blades at a correct height is essential when using a mulching mower. When its blades are set correctly, a mulching mower will distribute clippings more evenly than a standard mower, essentially eliminating the risk of spreading too many clippings onto any one spot and damaging the lawn as a result.

Can Clippings Be Used Elsewhere?

Clippings can be used as mulch and in a compost pile. When using clippings for either process, however, be sure to mix in other ingredients. Grass clippings, when they’re not spread out over a lawn but collected in a pile, will produce a very foul odor. However, when mixed with leaves or wood chips, the odor will dissipate.