Yard waste accounts for approximately 20 percent of all the materials buried in the Sioux Falls landfill each year. During the summer months, yard waste can amount to 50 percent or more of residential waste. Yard waste makes a major contribution to the production of methane gas and leachate. With rising costs for collection and disposal of wastes, keeping your yard waste out of the garbage truck saves money and protects the environment.
How to use Yard Wastes
Why Bag Your Grass Clippings?
After all, lawn care is hard work, and bagging your lawn clippings is one of the most time-consuming parts of the job. Sure, your lawn looks great afterwards, but the bigger your lawn, the more clippings, the more trash bags, and the more exhausting the process.
Now consider for a moment not bagging your grass. Gone are the hassles of stopping every few minutes to empty the mower bag, raking, and wrestling with expensive trash bags. Instead, your clippings are working their way back into the soil.
You may say, not bagging your grass is unhealthy for your lawn, will cause excessive thatch buildup, and kill your lawn. The fact is, clipping collection is not necessary. Clippings are often thought to contribute to thatch build-up. This is not the case. Thatch is primarily composed of turfgrass roots, crowns, rhizomes, and stolons. These plant parts contain large amounts of lignin which decomposes slowly. Grass clippings are mostly water; they contain little lignin and decompose quickly.
Clippings contain the nutrients your lawn needs to grow. In as little as 14 days, clippings release nutrients back into the soil. Every garbage bag of grass clippings contains up to 1/4 pound of usable organic nitrogen. You can reduce your fertilization costs by recycling lawn clippings back into the lawn.
How to Recycle Grass Clippings
Successfully recycling grass clippings back to your lawn requires only the kind of attention all lawns should have on a regular basis.
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Mow when your grass is dry and 3" to 4" tall. Never cut it shorter than 2" to 2 1/2" in height. This height will allow your lawn to have a larger and deeper root system, making a stronger defense against weeds and droughts.
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Use a sharp mower blade (a mulching mower is not necessary). A sharp blade and frequent mowing will mean finer clippings (1" or shorter) that will decompose quickly.
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Avoid over-fertilizing your lawn. If it becomes too dense with growth, your clippings won't reach the soil to decompose.
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Limit the use of lawn chemicals. Save money and allow soil organisms to thrive and return nutrients to the soil by decomposing grass clippings. Only apply chemicals when lawn problems have been correctly diagnosed.
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Grass selection can affect thatch build-up. The following is a list of grasses from the least to the most thatch forming: fine fescue, perennial ryegrass, tall fescue, Kentucky bluegrass, and zoysia grass.
Mulching Tips
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Grass Clippings-can be spread in thin layers over vegetable and flower beds, or mixed with leaves and spread in a layer.
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Leaves-of deciduous trees and shrubs can be spread around shrubbery in the fall.
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Wood chips-can be used around trees and shrubs or to make a good-looking, long-lasting path.
