Where to Throw Your Grass Clippings – Eco-Friendly Options

After putting in the effort to keep your lawn maintained, the final thing you want to do or think about is where to throw the leftover grass clippings. Lawn clippings, fortunately, are frequently better left alone. Do you have a mulching mower? If you do, your best bet is to mulch the clippings and leave them on your lawn to restore soil nitrogen and nourish it. However, if you want to discard grass clippings in an environmentally acceptable manner, Summit Turf Services is here to help. 

Grass Clippings Improve the Health of Your Lawn

Grass clippings are an excellent natural fertilizer. The clippings provide essential nitrogen to your lawn, reducing the quantity of lawn food required to keep your yard healthy. If your soil is clay-rich or sandy, grass clippings are especially beneficial. 

The easiest approach to make sure the efficacy of this natural mulch is mowing routinely with sharp mower blades.  Keep your cuttings to less than 1 inch in length. They will decay as a result of settling into the ground.

After mowing your grass, if the blades are too long, the clippings will just rest on top and potentially smother your lawn.  To avoid this, rake the grass clippings and distribute them more evenly over your yard, or consider composting them.

Additionally, you may want to mow your lawn at the highest setting on your mower before returning to the appropriate mowing height for your yard. If you own a mulching mower, this is much more effective.

Other Ways to Utilize Your Lawn Clippings

Besides mowing your lawn regularly, you should never mow over ⅓ the grass height. Grass is most healthy when it has some length, and 3-inches is the ideal height for the majority of lawns.

When the grass grows taller than 4 inches, it’s time to cut it.

It is critical to keep the blades on your mower sharp. A dull blade tends to shred the grass rather than cut it. This results in jagged edges at the blade’s tip, which eventually dry out. When this happens, the health of your grass declines and becomes more prone to illness.

When you put grass cuttings on the yard, make sure it is dry. Remember this if you use grass clippings as mulch in your garden.

Wet grass will mat down on existing grass, limiting oxygen availability. It also holds moisture and keeps mulch from penetrating the ground and soil.

Furthermore, if you have recently applied a herbicide to your lawn, do not utilize the grass clippings in place of mulch. The clippings can be harmful to plants that you wish to retain.

Grass Clippings Mythbuster: Clippings Don’t Cause Thatch to Grow

Grass clippings, contrary to common perception, do not cause thatch to grow in your yard.

Thatch, a coating of decaying grass plant pieces, leaves, and other organic debris that accumulates beneath the grass but above soil, can be harmful to your grass roots. Many homeowners dethatch their lawns to eliminate this layer of organic waste, allowing more oxygen, nutrients, and water to reach your grass roots.

Grass clippings can be extremely biodegradable due to their high water content. However, they degrade too fast to be used as thatch.

Thatch is typically produced by inconsistent mowing, over-fertilization with nitrogen, and lower soil oxygen levels. It forms when plant debris grows faster than dead grasses decay.

When Should You Bag the Grass?

There are exceptions to many rules including adding bagged grass to a compost pile and mixing it with other organic materials. Grass’ high nitrogen content makes them an excellent addition to a pile of compost and can be used in other gardening operations.

Remember that composting needs a proper ratio of carbon-rich materials (leaves, paper, and wood shavings) and nitrogen-rich elements (food scraps and grass clippings). The bacteria that break down these components into useful compost require some of each material type to grow.

If your grass has disease symptoms, such as dollar spot or leaf spot, don’t use the grass as mulch. You’re merely spreading the illness by doing so. Instead, you can reduce the severity of grass diseases by bagging it or putting it in a common compost bin. Again, if you just used a herbicide on your lawn, it’s better to bag your grass clippings and take them to your local dump

If it is hazardous to run your lawnmower without a bag, we recommend leaving the bag in place. Because you can’t remove the bag from every mower, put your safety as the first priority.

Also, if the grass clippings end up on the curb down in the gutter, make sure to sweep them up. Try to avoid letting the grass clippings get into your water supply or your neighbors water supply.   

Locate the Local Brush Dump

If your property cannot accommodate a compost pile or compost container, I recommend going to your local dump.

Many communities have a city dump with a brush dump that citizens can use for a low fee. Generally, they allow you to bring things like fallen branches, grass clippings, leaves, and trees and they will compost them. 

If one is unclear about where to dispose of grass clippings in the neighborhood, contact the local town hall or public works department, who can direct you to the nearest facility of this type.

If you must bag and dump your lawn clippings, pay whatever price is necessary to dispose of them correctly. It’s far better for the environment than simply discarding them in a forested area.

Last Thoughts on Grass Clippings and a Healthy Lawn 

Feeding your lawn is a great way to improve the health of your grass. It’s best to feed your lawn at least once a year. While you may buy fertilizers to feed your lawn, using the clippings as mulch is the greatest and most affordable way to feed your grass.

Even though the volume is lower, grass clippings give the same nutrients as lawn food including nitrogen and potassium. Frequent feedings might not deliver the quick satisfaction and joy that dumping lawn fertilizer on the lawn does, but they are a natural and cheap approach to get the same long-term benefit.

Summit Turf Services recommends watering your yard well because this will encourage your grass’s root system to grow deep, keeping your lawn alive through the warmest months and during droughts. 

For more lawn care tips and if you’re in need of exceptional lawn care services, contact Summit Turf Services today!