Grasscycling
What is Grasscycling?
- A simple and natural approach to lawn care.
- Clippings are left on the lawn after mowing, releasing valuable nutrients back into the soil.
What are the benefits of Grasscycling?
- Encourages a healthier lawn
- Can reduce water and fertilizer requirements
- Saves time (less mowing and yard waste disposal)
- Saves money (less water and fertilizer needed)
- Reduces waste in landfills
- Saves energy (hauling to landfill)
How do grass clippings affect our environment?
- On average, yard waste makes up 25% of all residential waste. During spring and summer, grass clippings make up 50% of residential waste.
How to Grasscycle
Use your current mower
- You can grasscycle with any mower by removing the collection bag and dispersing grass clippings throughout the lawn.
- Caution: If your mower does not have a safety flap covering the opening where the bag fits the chute or a plug for the chute, contact your local retailer to purchase a retrofit kit.
Switch to an environmentally-friendly mower
- Although you can grasscycle with any mower, you may want to consider buying a new lawn mower.
- Special mulching and recycling mowers cut grass blades into small pieces and force them into the turf.
- Electric models have added environmental benefits (Eliminates mower emissions and the potential for gas/oil spills associated with mowers), and are much quieter than a gas-powered motor.
Grasscycling Tips
Tips for grasscycling with your current lawn mower
Mowing
- Cut grass when the surface is dry (no drops of moisture on the grass).
- Keep mower blades sharp.
- To avoid covering up the grass surface, mow the lawn just enough so that no more than 1/3 or the grass blade is removed.
- In spring and summer when your lawn is growing faster, cut your lawn more frequently.
Watering
- Water in the morning, as less water will be lost. Watering in the evening makes your lawn susceptible to disease development due to the prolonged damp conditions.
- Avoid watering your lawn too frequently. Deep, infrequent watering encourages an extensive root system that helps the turf resist disease and stress.
- For information about turf replacement, water-efficient tips, and drought-tolerant lawns and plants, please visit the Water Department website.
Grasscycle | Myth vs. Fact
| Myth: | Grasscycling causes thatch build-up. |
| Fact: | Grass roots are the primary cause of thatch, not grass. Grass clippings are mostly composed of water and decompose rapidly. |
| Myth: | Grasscycling spreads lawn disease. |
| Fact: | Improper watering and fertilizing are the primary cause of disease. If an accommodating environment for disease exists, infestation will occur whether clippings are collected or not. |
| Myth: | Grasscycling makes lawns look bad. |
| Fact: | Grasscycling can actually produce a healthier-looking lawn if done properly. Cut the lawn frequently to produce small clippings that fall between standing blades and decompose quickly. Long clippings may produce a "hay-like" look which can easily be avoided. |
Long Beach Recycles
Environmental Services Bureau,
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Long Beach, CA 90806
Phone: (562) 570-2876
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