# Lawn Clipping



## YardWork314 (May 1, 2021)

I wasn't sure what section would be best for this question, but it seems to fit here. I always hear about the usefulness of lawn clippings due to their nutrients. My back yard has thick and dark green tall fescue, and I occasionally have to rake it. I'm currently trying to amend my soil in my front yard (thin topsoil/clay/thin slow growing grass). Would their be any benefit of taking the clippings from the back yard and spreading them lightly over the front yard? Or is that a waste of time and effort?


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## g-man (Jun 15, 2017)

Way too much work to make it worth it. Just mulch mow the back.


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## situman (Nov 3, 2020)

YardWork314 said:


> I wasn't sure what section would be best for this question, but it seems to fit here. I always hear about the usefulness of lawn clippings due to their nutrients. My back yard has thick and dark green tall fescue, and I occasionally have to rake it. I'm currently trying to amend my soil in my front yard (thin topsoil/clay/thin slow growing grass). Would their be any benefit of taking the clippings from the back yard and spreading them lightly over the front yard? Or is that a waste of time and effort?


If you want to add organic matter just throw down bags of Purely Organic or Milorganite if you prefer poop (which I dont).

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Purely-Organic-Products-25-lb-Lawn-Food-Fertilizer-LFJRDK1/204279747

Mulch the front clippings and throw down Next products, particularly their humic acid stuff.


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## gm560 (Feb 22, 2018)

YardWork314 said:


> Or is that a waste of time and effort?


Yes I think it would be a lot of work to do this. In the fall you could do this with leaves, however. I have brought tarps full of fallen leaves from my front yard where they are plentiful to the back for mulching to improve the soil.


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## Chocolate Lab (Jun 8, 2019)

I think there would be some benefit if the soil is really bare, because Mother Nature hates bare soil and you would be adding organic matter.

But a better plan would be, as gm560 said, to put fallen and mulched (run over them with a mower) leaves over that area for the winter. Leaves are amazing in improving bare, cruddy soil, even in just one fall/winter.

Even better would be to make a compost pile and add the grass to the leaves, which makes a very good carbon to nitrogen ratio.

As for too much work, that's very subjective, right?


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## Ngilbe36 (Jul 23, 2020)

Chocolate Lab said:


> I think there would be some benefit if the soil is really bare, because Mother Nature hates bare soil and you would be adding organic matter.
> 
> But a better plan would be, as gm560 said, to put fallen and mulched (run over them with a mower) leaves over that area for the winter. Leaves are amazing in improving bare, cruddy soil, even in just one fall/winter.
> 
> ...


Can confirm moving a ton of mulched leaves to an area in summer/fall = nice dirt next spring. I had a low spot in my back yard I attempted to fill with leaves just for fun and after adding probably 6 inches of finely chopped leaves, it filled the 1-2 inch low spot after decomposing.


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## UltimateLawn (Sep 25, 2020)

This year I will be bagging only. I feel that the heat here in DFW with the StAug moisture is just putting too much stress on the roots. As for fall leaves…last year I bagged and put them on the curb. This year I will be mowing and bagging and placing it in beds to help with freezes and as a prep to Spring mulch.


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## Chris LI (Oct 26, 2018)

Back to the original question about what to do with the heavy amount of clippings. As stated earlier, mulch them in. If very heavy, side discharge and double cut perpendicular (cross hatch), and get Gator blades if you don't have them. Cut twice a week, if needed. If you applied heavy N this spring, back off next year.


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## Buffalolawny (Nov 24, 2018)

Lawncology on Youtube has a video on how much clipping are worth to your lawn in relationship to how much "N" nitrogen your clippings are putting back into your lawn by not catching them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzjSLLBoaSM


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## Deadlawn (Sep 8, 2020)

Buffalolawny said:


> Lawncology on Youtube has a video on how much clipping are worth to your lawn in relationship to how much "N" nitrogen your clippings are putting back into your lawn by not catching them.


Cool stuff!


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