Either mow the rows repeatedly to further break down the size of the clippings or gather them up.

If the grass is particularly long and furrows of clippings are lying on the lawn.If you must mow your lawn when it’s wet, leaving clumps of wet clippings on the lawn is a big no-no.If your lawn has a disease of any kind, leaving those clippings on the lawn will likely help the problem persist.However, a small amount of grass clippings will decompose very quickly, so thatch shouldn’t develop. Thatch collects when the decomposing material builds up faster than it decomposes. Thatch is a thick layer of decomposing material that sits on top of the soil. There are some who meticulously gather grass clippings after each mowing because they fear (wrongly) that leaving them promotes thatch growth. Mow regularly so that the lawn doesn’t get too long is helpful as there’s never a clumpy layer of really long clippings to break down. Mowing when the grass is dry and sharpening the mower blades will help with this. As you mow, pass over already cut clippings because each time you pass over the clippings the more they’re broken up and will decompose more quickly.Ĭlippings need to be evenly spread across your lawn, not left in thick rows. Longer clippings stay on the top of the lawn and then your lawn gets more of a mown hayfield look. The trick in recycling your grass clippings is to make sure that the grass doesn’t get too long between mowing. Grass clippings will never burn your lawn and you don’t have to worry about delivering enough water to dilute the fertilizer or adding it at the wrong time of year. Decomposing grass clippings provide nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus (identified on commercial fertilizer with the initials N, K, and P respectively). Grass clippings are just leaves and stems and in such small pieces, they will break down fairly quickly providing constant fertilizer all season long. Obviously, excessive heavy clumps of clippings will harm your lawn, but leaving a reasonable amount can help your lawn. As well, shaded soil is less prone to weeds. It’s hard to imagine, but leaving grass clippings on the lawn provides the soil with some additional shade. After all, grass clippings are organic and 100% recyclable. If you can resist the temptation to gather up the grass clippings, there are some great benefits to leaving some of it on your lawn. Maybe you don’t want to fill your own composter with grass clippings and leaving it all on the lawn looks messy, especially when the grass grows so quickly in Spring and early Summer. It’s tempting to gather up all your grass clippings and put it out at the curb for the Ottawa’s yard waste collection. After the Spring rain, warm temperatures cause grass to shoot up.

Leave grass clippings on lawn