What About Thatch?

Don’t worry about grass clippings contrib-uting to thatch problems. Turf expertsnationwide agree that clippings do notproduce thatch because they are 80%water and decompose quickly. Rather,thatch is the accumulation of dead rootsand stems and is most often caused by overfertilizing and over watering. A thatchlayer of more than 1/2" should be removedas a matter of healthy lawn maintenance.

Other uses for clippings

Compost clippings at home: Clippingsare an excellent source of nitrogen for yourcompost pile. No more than 1/3 of the pileshould be fresh clippings. Mix thoroughlywith "brown" materials such as leaves orstraw and turn the pile regularly to keep itwell oxygenated and to prevent odors.

Use clippings as mulch: Apply driedgrass clippings directly on the soil about 1inch thick to reduce weeds, moderate soiltemperature, and control soil spattering,erosion, run-off and evaporation. Avoidmulching with clippings which have beenrecently treated with herbicides. This canharm your plants. As a precaution, mulchwith clippings from herbicide treated lawnsonly after two lawn mowings.

Incorporate clippings into garden soil:Mixing fresh grass clippings into the gar-den adds nutrients and organic matterwhich improves the texture and moistureretention properties of the soil. A two inchlayer of grass can be turned into the soil toa depth of 6" about once a month.

Alternative Landscapes

Consider planting ground covers such asEnglish ivy, pachysandra, and periwinkle;increasing shrub beds; or growing a wild-flower meadow as alternatives to turf grass.They look beautiful, don’t need mowing andwill help reduce lawn maintenance and yardwaste!

For More Information,Please Write to:

Connecticut Department ofEnvironmental ProtectionWaste Management Bureau

Recycling Program79 Elm Street

Hartford, CT 06106

Prepared cooperativelyby the

Connecticut and MassachusettsDepartments of

Environmental Protection

Printed with vegetable-based inkson recycled paper

Funding provided in partby the US Environmental Protection Agency,

Region I.

1993

DON’TTRASHGRASS!

Save Time and Money.tReduce Waste.t

Did you know that a 1/2 acre lawn inNew England produces over 3 tonsor nearly 260 bags of grass clip-pings each year? Think of all thetime, money and effort it would take tobag all those clippings. Why go throughall that hassle when it’s really not nec-essary?

You can have a healthy green lawnby leaving grass clippings wherethey fall! It’s simple...grass clippingslef~ on the lawn will decompose and actas a natural organic fertilizer. Thisallows you to reduce the amount of ad-ditional commercial fertilizer you needto apply. Your lawn will still be healthyand green because each time you mow,you will be returning valuable nutri-ents to the soil!

The key word is "less’...less fertil-izer, less water, less work, and bestof all, less waste! Recycling clippingsback into the lawn requires less effortthan disposing of them as waste. No onehas to handle the clippings - notyou, notyour lawn care professional and not thewaste management crew. You can re-duce your mowing time by nearly 40%by not bagging, and spend less moneyon fertilizer and trash bags. And by nottrashing grass, you’ll be doing your partfor the environment by reducing waste!

If you follow these "Don’t TrashGrass" mowing, fertilizing and wa-tering guidelines, not only will youhave a healthy lawn, but you’ll neverhave to bag grass clippings again!

Mowing Techniques & Tips

¯ Any mower can recycle grass clip-pings. Simply remove the grass catcher!Ask your lawn mower dealer if a specialsafety plug or adaptor kit is needed toconvert your mower into a "recycling"mower. You can also have a mulchingblade installed.

¯ Keep your grass mowed to 2"- 3" tall.

¯ Do not remove more than 1/3 of thegrass blade in any single mowing.For example, if your lawn is kept at 2"tall, it should not be allowed to growhigher than 3" before it is mowed again.

¯ Mow when the grass is dry.

Keep your mower blade sharp be-cause dull mowers tear the grass blade,injuring the plant, and create a brown-ish cast to the turf.

¯ If the grass gets just a bit too high,simply mow over the clippings a secondtime to further shred and scatter them.

¯ If excessive growth occurs betweenmowings, raise the mower height, mowand then gradually lower it over a spanof several mowings. This will help pre-vent shock to the plants.

¯ When it’s time to replace yourmower, consider buying a mulching,recycling, or a non-polluting reel mower.All of these do a good job of shreddingand scattering grass clippings.

Fertilizer Application

Proper fertilizer application is important.And remember, when it comes to fertilizer,more is not better! Research shows thatmost grasses require only modest levels ofnitrogen for good color and controlledgrowth. Too much fertilizer will make yourlawn grow faster, resulting in more mowingand more clippings!

Apply fertilizer to your lawn in late Apriland again in September. If a third treat-ment is needed, apply in late May. Applyonly 1/2 pound of nitrogen per 1000 squarefeet of lawn at each application. To figurethis out, simply divide 100 by twice thepercentage of nitrogen (N) in the fertilizer.This will give you the application rate inpounds of fertilizer per 1000 square feet oflawn. For example:

Fertilizer Divide 100byN-P-K twice the % of fertilizer torating Nitrogen(N){%) 1000 sq. ft.

12-4-8 100 dividedby 24 ffi4.1 lbs

16-8-8 100 divided by 32 =3.11bs

20-5-10 100dividedby40 =2.51bs

10-10-10 100 divided hy 20 = 5.0 llis

For slower, more uniform growth, choosefertilizers containing sources of slow-releasenitrogen such as methylene urea,ureaformaldehyde, sulfur coated urea, orIBDU. The bag may also read "water in-soluble nitrogen" or "slow release nitrogen".All are acceptable and will increase theamount of time the grass can use the nutri-ent.

Watering Practices

New England has a high precipitation rate,so turf grasses here don’t have to be wa-tered to survive. Lawns may turn brownand dormant during periods of drought, butwill turn green rapidly when moisture inthe soil is replaced. Remember, the moreyou water your lawn, the faster it’sgoing to grow and the more you willhave to mow it!

¯ Conserve resources by not water-ing unless the grass really needs it.Let Mother Nature water your lawn!

If you choose to water, 1 inch ofwater is adequate to wet the soil toa depth of 4"- 6". Place an empty canunder the sprinkler to measure when aninch has been applied. If water begins torun off the lawn before an inch is ap-plied, turn offthe water and let it soak infor an hour or so, then resume wateringuntil 1" is applied.

¯ Water deeply and less frequently toencourage deep root growth. Light,frequent watering encourages shallowroots and may lead to increased diseaseand stress injury.

¯ The best time to water is in themorning because less water is lostthrough evaporation and transpiration.

¯ Avoid watering during mid-day andtry not to water in the evenings sincea lawn that remains damp during thenight is more prone to disease.