I bag inside the dog's fenced area and mulch the rest. Wet grass gets tracked in the house on wet paws if it's not bagged.

I don’t bag anything, leaves, short grass, long grass, small limbs. Have never in 30 years dethatched. Top soil is thin (inches thick) so the lawn feeds itself. Have the same lawn tractor as well - 18 hp Gravely tractor.

quote:

Originally posted by Gustofer:
If it builds up, it can and will choke the lawn of water and fertilizer.

There's a reason somebody invented the dethatcher.

I supposed if you've got a good mulching blade that chops it fine you might be OK, but I bag mine and dump it elsewhere. Dethatch once a year also.

I was under the impression that thatch is not from cut grass above, but the actual grass and grass roots that remains? Am I wrong?

In spring I have to cut 2x a week or my push mulching mower just bogs out. Sharp blades or not.

A lot depends on the type of grass. In our parts of Texas, it's St. Augustine and Bermuda. I have never (and don't know anyone who has) bagged grass. Years ago when I lived up north, cool season grasses like Kentucky Blue could get so long in just a week that if you didn't bag, you'd have big clumps of wet clipping which would never go away.

I bag mine,then to the gardens, got ground cover,it rots,worms eat it,give me casings, feed the tomatoes and keeps weeds down and the plants cooler.
They love it,very valuable organic resource.

quote:

Cut your lawn more often, leaving shorter clippings and let them decay into the lawn. Free nitrogen, earth friendly.

I agree. It's been a LONG time since I bagged grass. It's heavy. You have to move the bags. And... it's not good for the environment to store all of that in plastic bags where it doesn't fully decay.

http://extension.colostate.edu...ubs/garden/07202.pdf

"Let grass clippings fall back onto the
lawn, unless they are used for composting
or mulching elsewhere in the landscape.
Grass clippings decompose quickly and
provide a source of recycled nutrients and
organic matter for the lawn. Mulching
mowers can do this easily. Side-discharge
rotary mowers also distribute clippings
effectively if the lawn is mowed at the
proper frequency.

Grass clippings do not contribute to
thatch accumulation. If herbicides are
applied to the lawn, do not use clippings in
the vegetable or flower gardens. Keep them
on the lawn."

Here is another article from the same University entirely devoted to the topic:
http://extension.colostate.edu...ubs/garden/07007.pdf

"The idea that clippings left on lawns will
cause thatch has been disproven. Thatch is a
brown, spongy material consisting of dead
grass stems and roots.

Excessive thatch is undesirable because
it prevents water and air from penetrating
to grass roots. A healthy population of
microorganisms and earthworms in the soil
can digest thatch.

Grass clippings break down quickly and
encourage the beneficial earthworms and
microorganisms that maintain healthy grass
and healthy soil. Regular core cultivation
(aeration) is the best way to prevent thatch."

&

"Nitrogen is the fertilizer nutrient most
used by turf. Clippings contain nitrogen and
other nutrients. When returned to the lawn,
clippings recycle nutrients in an organic,
slow-release form that promotes steady grass
growth. Returning clippings reduces the
amount of supplemental nitrogen fertilizer
required by lawns but does not eliminate
it entirely."

quote:

If it builds up, it can and will choke the lawn of water and fertilizer.

There's a reason somebody invented the dethatcher.

That has not been my experience.

I've been mulching my lawn for 15+ years. I will never go back to bagging because it takes me twice as long and I got better things to with my time.

Hmmm...learn something new every day.

I did do some further reading on it and found that it is important to distinguish between regular mowers with mulching blades and those mowers designed as mulching mowers with mulching blades. The latter doing what they are designed to do, and the former not working well at all.

I don't have a deep mulching deck on my mower, so I'll continue to bag and compost.

I always just mulch the grass and leave it. I bag when the damn patches of crab grass pop up from my neighbors lawn to minimize regrowth the next year.

I do not bag. I just mow in non mulching mode with mowers. The exception is sometimes weather will lengthen times between mowing. If grass is really high I will use the pull behind vacuum/chopper I use for leaves.

I haven’t bagged grass in ..... decades.

Why take all the nutrients off the lawn?

If you are mulching and dissatisfied with your results, it could be your blade design.

About 5 years ago Oregon G6 gator blades came out and they were a big improvement over the original G3 gator blade. Drawback was it was heavy. Works great with powerful commercial mowers but was heavy for residential.

Another improvement a year or so later with the G5 gator blade and imho this is the ultimate mulching blade. Same basic size as G6 but lighter. Turns clippings into 1-2" pieces that break down fast. Amazon and Jack's Small Engine are a couple places that sell G5s.

I run high lift blades on trim side and center and a G5 on the discharge side. Works well.

the guy behind us has 5 "show Cattle"
that lounge around , all day .

I might approach him and ask how much he would offer to pay me ( per trash can full)

to toss our grass clippings over the electric fence for his cattle.

How much should I ask for ?

$2.00 ? $4.00?

Wholly shit
talk about a thread drift

I cut my grass once a week, sometimes more often when the grass is growing faster. I bag the clippings, put those in paper lawn bags that the city picks up once a week. I have a nice lawn, and have never had any luck mulching. I utilize a lawn fertilizing company that fertilizes, and weed and feeds five times a season. Gives me a very nice looking lawn.

I routinely bag, I feel like the lawn looks neater. It collects the fallout from all the trees around as well, and there's a bunch. I agree the lawn might be healthier if I mulch, but the fescue grows so fast in the spring, I think I'd need to cut every 4-5 days, and I'm not sure I want to do that. Plus, taking the mulch plug out of the deck and reinstalling the bagger is a major pain. I use Gator mulching blades with my bagger because it doesn't suck up all the clippings so the ones left behind are right sized. Soil tests revealed organic matter to be a little on the low side, so I'm thinking about a move to mulching for summer only when the lawn growth slows, and the trees stop dropping all the pollen, gum balls, sticks, and crap. That's weed season, though. We'll see.

I installed 3 Gator mulching blades to my Toro MX5060 zero turn 50" deck mower and NEVER bag.

Mulch cut and forget.

quote:

Originally posted by doublesharp:
I bag inside the dog's fenced area and mulch the rest. Wet grass gets tracked in the house on wet paws if it's not bagged.

The only reason we keep a 40 ft circle of grass is for the dogs to lounge in. I bag it for the same reason. During the winter, when the Bermuda dies off, they bring in bits of dead grass (wire coated dogs), so I run the mower around a few times to collect the dead grass, bag it, and take it out to the corner of the property where I've dumped clippings for 15 years.