Mulching Vs. Bagging? What Should I do?
Should you bag or mulch your grass clippings? The debate continues as we go into further detail from our last video discussing the pros and cons of mulching or bagging and what you can do with all your grass clippings. The answer isn't simple, but we help you determine the best answer for your growing situation.
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Пікірлер: 159
Did I just get a university lecture on cutting grass? LOVED IT! Thanks.
My takeaway: If you’re cutting more than 1/3 the height of the grass, bag it and keep it on your property for weed perimeter control. Long grass clippings left on lawn lead to build up of thatch due to ratio of carbon/nitrogen carbon taking longer to break down. Mulch your grass when it’s about 1/3 or less frequently as it provides your lawn with plenty of nitrogen from the young clippings.
I bag because I keep my grass 4 inches high and I only mow once a week. Thanks for sharing.
I bag in the beginning and end of the season and mulch in the mid season.
Thanks for all the content and info you have put out. It’s been very helpful. I have always bagged my clippings
This was really helpful and I look forward to trying both. I keep giving my clippings away and I will start keeping some. Thank you
Excellent content my friend! I mulch a lot but the last few years I have had serious problems with spider mites and use the bagger to suck them up and throw them away. This does slow them down quite a bit in the summer months. Once temps come back down I mulch again. Keep up the excellent videos!👍
Such sensible advice - thank you so much!
Thanks for this very informative video. I like to bag my clippings during spring, unfortunately I run out of places to recycle it as the grass grows too fast during this time of the year (mowing 2-3 times per week). Once the temperature starts getting warmer and the growing slows down I then mulch it.
i bag on saturday and i mulch on tuedays, water on my watering days of wednesday and sunday. and i apply ferts/seaweed/kelp/iron on sundays as well.
I’ll bag in the Fall to help remove leaves. I’ll also bag a couple of times in Spring and use clippings for garden mulch. Other than these time I mulch or rear discharge.
I ramped up my cutting to every other day and noticed significant growth. I’ve always bagged, however I’m now doing a bag for the first pass, and then a quick second pass that’s mulched. It’s not nothing but I’m hoping for some benefits further into the season.
Great informative video!
Great discussion, thanks for the info.
@SoiLab
Жыл бұрын
Thanks for watching!
Great information Matt! Thanks 👊🏼
@SoiLab
2 жыл бұрын
Thanks Pacific Northwest Lawns!
Amazing information, thank you
I live in sunny and warmSt. Petersburg, FL. Have St. Augustine grass. Always bag then dump into my compost container along with other organic items I compost.
Good info. Minor correction I see on lawnTube constantly. Thatch is a layer of roots, rhizomes, and stolons integrated with the soil in spreading turf. Thatch is not decomposing grass clippings and other debris. These are simply lawn debris, not thatch. Even when the pieces are too big from mowing too infrequently they are debris and not thatch. Spreading turf causes thatch. Bunching turfs do not.
Brilliant vid, very informative 🤘🏻
@SoiLab
2 жыл бұрын
Thank you! Glad you found it helpful.
Thanks for you excellent info. Most useful.
I have a Honda mower with the Twin-Cut blades. I cut my lawn once a week in the “mulch” setting. My old mower had a normal blade and I had to bag it but the blades on the Honda dice the mulch up nice so I leave it on the lawn. Awesome mowers! My Honda also bags nicely when the grass is wet… when I do bag.
I mulch every other week and bag on the off weeks. Seems to be a good balance.
I’ve always owned a property that was inundated with weeds, so I always bagged. Just this last week I mulched for the first time because I’m paying a chemical guy to treat my property that just got my irrigation system installed. I’m ecstatic with the results and can’t wait to see it improved more and more. We’re in Oklahoma with mostly Bermuda and some Fescue under trees.
We have a site the city has for us to leave bagged lawn clippings and leaves which they turn into compost and tree limbs into mulch to be used for free.
I have bagged my Bermuda for the last 3 years and my Bermuda has been healthy and thick and basically weed free. I mow every 3 to 4 days. I use PGF complete every 5 to weeks along with Dirt Booster Plus. I havs had excellent results and a healrhy green plush Bermuda lawn
Thanks to the comment about weeds. Could you possibly find some common weeds and experiment if they contribute to lawn health, or spread, or just be a silent killer of grass roots. I know dandelions are a pain. But they're not all too aggressive with killing roots.
I have mulched for years. Early in home ownership, I bagged because others did it, and mower came with a bag. Now with each mower purchase the bag stays clean as the day I purchased the mowers. Mulch leaves in the Fall too. Never bag. Learned yhis from Michigan State Ext
He said mow two or three times a week, who has time for that
@COCHOSCO
Жыл бұрын
Retired people
@hpotter2954
Жыл бұрын
People who don’t watch TV.
@NicBarella
Жыл бұрын
I got a robot do it everyday.
@TheBmonster1
11 ай бұрын
Mow a little bit take a break
@leonsoto8333
11 ай бұрын
Umm... then bag! 🫨🫨
Eventually I will be bagging and hot composting my clippings and leaves. I just moved and want to do a refresh of everything because I don’t know what did or did not get sprayed on my soil.
Me and my friend are trying to start a landscaping business i have been mowing this house for a little over a month and its been hotter than normal would that thin out the grass or is that me not mulching enough?
Is this advice relevant to all types of grass? Seems like I have to bag my zoysia all the time during active growing season. Otherwise I would have to cut it every other day.
Mid spring, my grass grows like crazy, have to mow it every 3 days. To slow it down, I’ll bag it once or twice in a row to take away some nitrogen.
What is P&W? Informative and interesting, thank you. We bag and use clippings as mulch in gardens and low areas.
@Skarecrow1949
12 күн бұрын
Pacific Northwest
Great info Matt! Now, I would think mulching helps with retaining moisture in the soil. Yes?
Excellent information.
Great information. I live in the high desert where there is low humidity. Does that situation make a difference in mulching?
@lifeintornadoalley
2 жыл бұрын
I'm not a soil expert as he is, I just commercially cut. If it's too dry, I think the nutritional value goes down. That's about all I know on that. I do believe the grass blade will shut down and focus energy on the roots. But don't quote me on that
I have always bagged. No thatch buildup, grass doesn't smother from summer heat, reduced chances of getting fungus and - incident of weeds and use of herbicides a thing of the past.
I started mulching this year a month into my grass started turning yellow from the root up . I have so many mushrooms now . I water once or twice a week depending. In twenty minute intervals on each section of lawn. No grass looks so bad now from mulching I’ll never do that again.. it ruined my lawn.
Always will depend on the blade you use and how sharp. The more you mow, the more you grind up more from last cut! Remember everyone ⅓ rule! You'll never worry about clumping and easier to manage. Soil will thank you. Keep these coming! Really enjoying these
@SoiLab
2 жыл бұрын
Glad you are enjoying the vids so far!
What about any effect on weeds? Let say you have a more than desirable number of weeds, say oxalis, in part of your lawn; would mulching possibly keep seeds in the lawn and distribute them whereas bagging and getting rid of it might help ?
Doesn't the lawn mower's ability to mulch and of course the type of blade on the mower have an effect on the mulch?
Great video to learn the WHY of what is largely becoming incorrect advice. I think the first disclaimer is that *MOST* people aren't going to mow 2-3 times a week. You're *lucky* to get your once a week done. The second (which was talked about) is that it's going to vary widely by area. I live in Florida, and for easily 5-6 months of the year, the grass will grow an inch or more in just 3 days. For a typical home owner who's only going to mow once a week, there are **ZERO** situations in which it makes sense to mulch. You are *ALWAYS* going to have a tremendous amount of growth where mulching is just going to lead to accumulation. I learned this intuitively during my first years of home ownership, this video was great at explaining the science behind it. Even using the lesson from this video: have none of you ever raked leaves before? Sure, those nutrients may have been returned to the soil, but you're still left with the dried remains of that leaf. It still has to get removed. Same with the grass. I'd say for 85% or more people, bagging is the way to go. I have better things to do with my free time than be mowing my yard 3 days a week! lol
@ProCaddie
14 күн бұрын
I am in Florida also and I had a service that never bagged and it seemed that I was geting a lot of weeds of all types starting to grow all over the lawn. They were also cutting the lawn next door to me and I know they had weed problem so my thinking was that by not bagging either lawn the weeds were being spread out all over the place. I decided to start cutting my lawn myself and bag every time hoping that along with a weed killer the problem will be solved...........we shall see.....
Does it matter what type of grass you have?
If you beg your grass and use that in compost. What do you use to replace the lost grass values removed from the yard Compost made to break down organic material These material can be used anywhere. You can make compost and use it on your yard and reduce the other things such as fertilizer . Compost is compost. Regardless materials used . Think about it.
Would bagging grass clippings lower the amount of phosphorus in the soil over the course of a few years?
Is frequent side discharging equivalent to mulching?
@R900DZ
Жыл бұрын
Yes
How can you believe a guy that's just suggested mowing three times a week
@WhyJesus
9 ай бұрын
Lol, maybe if you have a 20x20 patch of ground and it doesn't' rain every other day. The Lord said the harvest is ripe, but grass clippings ain't it!
@Wesquire
3 ай бұрын
But he's right. Why are you upset about it?
@EdTomos
2 ай бұрын
@@Wesquire who is upset?
One challenge is that the typical mower doesn’t mulch well. Reportedly, a professional mower’s blades rotate at a much higher rpm which mulches thoroughly.
Do you actually cut grass in that outfit? If so how do you keep clean? I always end up covered in sweat/dirt/grass.
What is thatch
Do he really just say to spread the grass clippings along the perimeter on my property
At 7:05 why is there a guy cutting the mulched side with the bag?
This has been proven over and over! Mulch all day every day!
So basically bag it for most people who have a job.
I cut every 3 days
If you have weeds in your lawn does mulching spread more weeds in your lawn?
@lifeintornadoalley
2 жыл бұрын
That'll depend on the weed type. If it seeds via air, then yes it'll spread more. If it doesn't seed via air, then it shouldn't really spread. Just make sure you don't let the weeds get that mature to be able to seed.
@wobbled5609
Жыл бұрын
Get your lawn sprayed, cut it and bag it, when the weeds have gone - mulch. Unless you have a small lawn, in which case just bag.
@wicusconradie
Жыл бұрын
I had a big lawn in tropical area where everything grew. I never used herbicides on my lawn, and when I had new weeds, I just mowed more frequently. I always mow not lower than 1.5-2 inches. I always bagged, since I had a place to dump my clippings on my property. My lawn went from desert to getting frequent compliment from friends.
My experience has always been when I mulch, I seem to get more ground moles. Don't know why maybe more grubs who knows. Besides it seems like the charge on my battery mower lasts longer when I bag. I think keeping that grass under the mower to be cut and recut as it does when you mulch works the motor harder than if you bag and the grass just gets right out from under the mower into the bag.
Why don't you want those bluegrass reseeding?
I always bag, lawn looks better than mulching
@hpotter2954
Жыл бұрын
Me too.
Sharp blades are king for nice looking lawns. Mowers work easier cutting clean and not mashing grass blades.
Does bagging grass help cut down on weeds?
@hpotter2954
Жыл бұрын
I find it does.
We have a reasonably well-kept lawn. Our neighbor next door has almost driven us out of our minds with his obsessive-compulsive behavior over his blade(s) of grass. Every 2nd day in summer (for hours). I wish he would empty the spiders out of his pockets and find a hobby, it is insane .
Side throw and let it go
You should be mulching . Because when you bag the grass. You actually waste the nitrogen in the grass. Your lawn needs the nitrogen to thicken up with
Always bag!!! Grass (plants) blood is water. Nothing happens in a plant without water. Thatch will absolutely choke out your water supply increasing your water bill and wasting water. All I do are lawn renovations and lawn fertilization and weed control. The little benefit of mulching isn’t worth it.
@wally7856
26 күн бұрын
Grass clippings are completely different from thatch and do not contribute to thatch.
@stoonley4
26 күн бұрын
@@wally7856that’s is false.
I mulch simply cause it’s easier lol
Another reason to bag is to remove disease-affected grass blades.
I mulch coz im lazy
I never ever bag
"Mole-ching" 🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️
Always bag. Looks 10x better. Can wait longer in between.
If you have dogs, trust me, you bag.
My neighbor cuts his grass at 10 PM in the dark. Is he crazy?
@icxcnika9399
2 ай бұрын
Vampire maybe?
@bocephus124
Ай бұрын
Maybe special, bless his heart
@TrapZoneCanine
Ай бұрын
@@icxcnika9399definitely a vampire
@ericcomfort6228
Ай бұрын
Is it super hot where you live? I’m in Georgia and I’ve done mine in the dark because it was just too hot during the afternoon.
My clippings are weeds, not weed suppression. Lol
Lost me at candy bar
What sad person mows 3x a week?
@riflebear1711
21 күн бұрын
Anyone with a legendary lawn.
@macdelttorres3366
20 күн бұрын
My neighbor is on his lawn every day….. cutting, edging, seeding etc….. spends about an hr and a half a day…. His lawn doesn’t look too good
@kaytee7607
18 күн бұрын
Retirees
I bet he's a "fun-ji" at parties...
Mow two to three times a week - get real that’s an overkill. I stopped watching video at this stage!!!
Be careful using lawn clippings with fertilizers that aren’t organic around your garden. I don’t use my clippings in my gardens at all
@leadnsteel1428
Жыл бұрын
I use shredded leaves... They have many benefits for the plants.
Grass is waste of time
This is the problem with most of today's reviews. Always an agenda. Green people. Mulching is no good period. Mowing 3 times a week? Please. I have been doing lawns my whole life.with no bias don't mulch bagging is always better.
@NorthlanderMN
Жыл бұрын
Bagging all the time is taking from the soil all the time. With out fertilizing or water in a drought they’d be the first to die off with water restrictions. Bagging is an old habit that done mostly by seniors.
@xenomorph7299
Ай бұрын
Bagging is dumb no fertilizer.
Trying to imagine giving a single solitary fuck about this
Never mulch with newly laid sod. Thatch will not break down.