The Benefits of Grass Clippings Around the Yard and Garden
Creating perfectly manicured lawns may start with choosing between the right type of sod for your area that thrive in our Orlando climate. But, there is so much more to caring for your lawn than picking the one that looks best. For example, irrigation timing, natural vs chemical herbicides, and even whether or not to clean grass clipping up are just a few things that a homeowner or property manager should be considering before making a decision.
What most people fail to understand when choosing a sod, however, is how many benefits come from grass clippings, and the role it plays in maintaining healthy Florida landscapes. Designing a lawn care plan that includes grass clipping creates an opportunity to enhance the soil, improve moisture control, and control some weeds without harsh chemicals.
Here are a few tips that will help you use grass clippings properly to capture the greatest gardening benefit.
Mulch For Magnificent Garden Moisture Control
If you live in Florida, you know that summers here get hot. Keeping flower beds and lawns hydrated is essential to maintaining healthy plants and sod, especially immediately after sod installation. Once you know how much moisture each sod variety needs, you can make a plan to mulch with grass clippings. Your Duda representative can help you decide how much grass mulch you need in plant bedding areas, and whether leaving grass clippings after a routine mowing is enough to maximize moisture control.
Whither Those Weeds
Controlling weeds naturally, using grass clippings, is an excellent way to maintain a perfectly groomed lawn, and protect our beautiful south Florida ecosphere. Grass clippings that are smaller than one inch will rapidly break down, and work their way into the soil. In the meantime, the clippings provide a barrier against weed growth and spread. Mulched grass clippings from zoysia sod may be applied to borders and exposed soil to discourage weeds from getting in gardens or putting down roots that would eventually work their way into your healthy sod. If your goal is a beautiful lawn and garden, apply mulched grass clippings to areas that provide a welcoming environment for invasive plants – bull thistle, buttonweed, dandelion, and crabgrass.
Support Strong Roots
Mowing your lawn to an appropriate height, on a schedule that encourages healthy growth will ensure you have plenty of grass clippings for weed prevention, but you may still have to hand pluck some weeds or use an environmentally friendly application for total weed control.
Mowing your grass before it gets too high provides ample clippings you can let settle into the ground. No raking, no bagging, no driving to the community compost bin to drop off your latest donation. As the clippings decay, your soil gets a healthy infusion of nutrients and organic matter that promotes turf health.
Grass Clipping Benefits for Florida Homeowners
Maintaining perfectly manicured south Florida lawns can be truly challenging due to our hot climate year-round. Leveraging the grass clippings can help you reduce chemical applications and discourage some weed infestations, as well as cut back on your watering bill. You can buy sod that is especially well-suited to our environment from a local sod farm. Look for sod varieties that are heat and drought tolerant. Before you visit a sod farm, do some research, make sure the farm offers Florida-specific sod and turf varieties to ensure the best chance for success.
The most common yard and gardening benefits include:
- Reducing lawn-related landfill deposits,
- Promoting a safe, chemical-limited environment for bees and other wildlife who visit your yard searching for food,
- Controlling moisture and supporting water conservation efforts,
- Discouraging weed growth and spread,
- Improving soil health,
- And, maintaining a beautiful lawn with a free treatment – only your time and energy is required to maximize the benefits of using grass clippings. And, we all love something free – right?
If you’re looking for a more personal touch with some professional guidance, trust the experts at Duda Sod with all of your sod needs. Duda Sod offers expert advice and products cultivated specifically for our south Florida warm climate. Visit our farm or contact us online for help designing a lawn maintenance plan that includes leveraging the benefits of sod grass clippings to support a thriving lawn and garden.