I know we are just now getting over a very interesting week of snow, sleet, and rain, but don’t forget that spring is just around the corner. With spring comes gardening, landscaping, and lawns. Many of us are looking forward to the smell of soil on our hands and the feel of the sun on our backs.
Consider this year instead of cutting and hauling away all your grass clippings, mulch the grass back into the soil instead. This idea is called “Grasscycling”. This is nothing new for some folks, but when we harvest our grass and take it away to the dump or for recycling, we are taking away precious natural resources from our own properties. Your grass needs the old clippings to nurture the roots and promote water retention in clay soils or water runoff in sandy soils.
After the development of suburbs in the 1950’s, and lawns became all the rage, there was a notion that mulching led to thatch. This could not be further from the truth. Mulching promotes a healthy lawn, saves resources, and saves energy (you make less trips to the landfill).
Just remember to keep your blades sharp on your mower. Consider, if you haven’t already, purchasing a mulching lawn mower to produce smaller particles. In addition, promote optimal health of your grass by never cutting more than one-third of height off at a time. This will keep your lawn healthy and happy and will reduce clumping. If you do have clumping, pick it up and spread it around or compost it with the rest of you clippings.
Article seen as published in the North County News as part of a regular "Recycling Tip of Week" column
Consider this year instead of cutting and hauling away all your grass clippings, mulch the grass back into the soil instead. This idea is called “Grasscycling”. This is nothing new for some folks, but when we harvest our grass and take it away to the dump or for recycling, we are taking away precious natural resources from our own properties. Your grass needs the old clippings to nurture the roots and promote water retention in clay soils or water runoff in sandy soils.
After the development of suburbs in the 1950’s, and lawns became all the rage, there was a notion that mulching led to thatch. This could not be further from the truth. Mulching promotes a healthy lawn, saves resources, and saves energy (you make less trips to the landfill).
Just remember to keep your blades sharp on your mower. Consider, if you haven’t already, purchasing a mulching lawn mower to produce smaller particles. In addition, promote optimal health of your grass by never cutting more than one-third of height off at a time. This will keep your lawn healthy and happy and will reduce clumping. If you do have clumping, pick it up and spread it around or compost it with the rest of you clippings.
Article seen as published in the North County News as part of a regular "Recycling Tip of Week" column
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