Grass Recycling

-What is Grass Recycling? Grass recycling is the natural way you can have a green, healthy lawn while spending less time and money!
-You can be the envy of your neighbors with a beautiful lawn with much less work and expense.
-Wouldn’t you rather be sipping an ice cold lemonade in the shade, rather than spending time emptying those grass clippings into expensive bags and cans then lugging them out to the curb for pick-up? -Keep in mind that a typical lawn of 5,000 square feet generates about 35 pounds of clippings per mowing.
-Years of research have shown that by mowing frequently (5-6 times a month) and not bagging those clippings can save lawn owners up to 40% of the time they spend on routine lawn care!

Simple Steps for Grass recycling

-Cut only the top 1/3 of the grass blade and leave the clippings on the lawn.
-Mow when the grass is dry to avoid tracking and clumping.
-Keep your mower blade sharp.
-No special equipment is necessary. While mulching mowers are available (and do
an excellent job), any conventional mower can recycle – just remove the bag! (In the case of rear discharge mowers, the exhaust chute must be shut off. Adapter kits or retro-fit kits are available for your conventional mower for about $15).

Water and Fertilize Less

-Don’t throw away free fertilizer with your clippings recycle them!
-Believe it or not, clippings left on the lawn supply 1/3 or more of the nitrogen need to keep your lawn green and healthy.
-When grass recycling is properly done, clippings settle quickly between the growing blades of grass, where they shelter the roots from the sun – conserving moisture. As they break down, they release more moisture as well as nutrients into the soil. This means that the grass needs to be watered less frequently.

What about thatch?

-Thatch is an accumulation of dead roots, stems, and rhizomes which are parts of the grass plant that decompose slowly. Clippings, which are 95% water, are leaves of the grass plant and decompose too quickly to contribute to thatch.

If you choose to still bag your grass clipping please mark your can “GRASS” to help us avoid checking every can on the road, since household trash is usually in the same type of can.

Regards,

Scott McCabe
Assistant Supervisor
Clark D.P.W.

Grass Pickup will be done by an outside contractor and will start on Monday, April 30 and will continue each Monday thereafter through October 15.  Please note the two Holiday pick-ups which will be done on Wednesday.   The 2012 schedule is as follows: