skip to main content

Organic Gardening

grass clippings & shredded leaves- mulch?

16 years ago

What would the pros/cons be of using a mixture of grass clippings & shredded (mowed) leaves as a mulch for my vegetable garden? I want something to help conserve moisture, but I don't like the idea of wood mulch due to the temporary nitrogen loss (we grow a good bit of corn).

All grass clippings would come from my own yard, and I don't use any pesticides, herbicides, or fertilizers on it.

Thanks,

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (7)

Kimmsr
16 years ago
A good mulch will 1) aid in "weed" growth suppression, 2) aid in soil moisture retention, 3) aid in keeping the soil cooler, and 4) help add organic amtter to the soil. Leaves and grass clippings will do that. Dr. Alex Shigo, now deceased but once the chief of research for the US Forest Service, found that woody mulches (wood chips, bark, etc.) tended to encourage a more fungally dominate soil that tended to be more acidic while vegetable wastes (grass clippings, leaves, etc.) tended to encourage a more bacterial dominate soil that tended to be closer to neutral. Flowers and vegetables prefer soils more toward a neutral pH (6.2 to 6.8) while trees and shrubs tend to prefer a more acidic soil pH (5.5 or so) so chose which mulch to use depending on what you are growing.
melonhedd
16 years ago
sounds like a great mulch - pile it on! You will be amazed at how fast your grass and leaves will decompose. I try to keep at least 3 or 4 inches of leaves, grass, old hay or straw in my veggie beds. Seems to really help during our vicious texas summers...good gardening to you!
Related Discussions
mulching with shredded leaves
Q
Comments (9)
I have used shredded leaves as mulches on my planting beds for years and have not removed those mulches in the spring since they will be needed even more as summer progresses. Shredded leaf mulches can help modify soil temperatures during the winter while during the spring and summer they will aid in suppressing unwanted plant (weed) growth, aid in soil moisture conservation, aid in modifying soil temperatures, and add organic matter to the soil. There simply is no good reason to remove that mulch in the spring, although you may need to pull back some for a short time if you plant seeds.
...See More
grass clippings as mulch?
Q
Comments (15)
I agree with Kimmsr clippings mulched between the rows to thickly causes odor when watered heavily as the soil doesn't get a chance to breath so I spread it on thinly and apply the clippings more often to give them a week or so to dry out and start breaking down. If you have a whole bunch of clippings and leaves in the fall spread them on your garden and till them in and add water and let nature do its thing and by spring when you are preparing your garden it will be part of your soil.
...See More
Grass clippings: Mulch lawn or add to compost
Q
Comments (16)
@Toxc: I've certainly had a time or two when I've decided to bag/compost some because the amounts were prodigious - but more often than not it turned out the stuff I left behind decomposed on its own pretty well. (I 'experiment' by doing it differently when I feel like it or got tired of bagging or still had beer in the fridge). I very much like your point above that it depends on the lawn and its health - if it's thick and lush and well-established in good soil, taking a few bags out for other purposes once in a while when cutting the lawn is probably not going to affect it much. Going back to the original poster's question, along the same lines, it may also depend on areas of the lawn. I wouldn't say I am systematic about it, but I try to 'return' more organic material (like grass clippings) in areas of the lawn that are thinner or dry or whatever - and 'borrow' from those that crank no matter what the conditions. I have a patch or two that tend to get dry and thin, and some areas around trees - they get extra compost and clippings and mulch, and the well-fed bits of thick lawn get nothing and contribute to some of the others. Can't tell if any of this helps of course but it keeps me out of trouble.
...See More
Grass clippings as mulch?
Q
Comments (4)
I really don't think that grass clippings make a good mulch at all. Period. When applied in a large heap, they become hot as they begin the rapid break down process....and plants do NOT like that heat. Too, as QQ mentions, they break down too fast to be useful as 'mulch'. AND, you are correct that if you continue to pile it on week after week, you will end up with quite a sludgy mess in the underlayers. There isn't much that smells worse than piles of decomposing grass. A mulch is a (preferably organic) layer that is applied on top of the soil to modify temperatures, to maintain soil moisture, etc. It should be as long lasting as possible, and should be something that does not create a nitrogen insufficiency as it slowly begins to decompose. Mixing grass clippings with chopped up leaves would be a much better idea, but the best plan of all would be to leave the clippings on the grass, where they can break down and continue to give back to the soil. Any reason why you don't want to do that this year?
...See More
squeeze
16 years ago
perfect mix, the worms will love ya, the soil microbes will thrive, and the corn will head for the clouds

Bill
gregbaker
Original Author
16 years ago
Thanks for all the replies. Sounds like it's a definite "go" with the grass & leaves. Grass clippings in short supply so far (drought here) but most years very, very plentiful. Leaves not a problem in any year- the elm, maples, hackberries, poplar, and sassafras in my yard see to that!
TerriBuck
16 years ago
I chop up my ten million fallen leaves every fall and spread them around the back yard. Then I use them to mulch the front gardens in the summer. I also have more formal leaf mulch piles that I use to till into new beds. No bagged leaves go to the landfill from my house!
peggy_g
16 years ago
This is a great plan. Just be aware that fresh grass can generate heat, so if you put it around plants be sure to keep it off their stems. Happy gardening.
gregbaker
Original Author
16 years ago
Thanks for the tip peggy g!

Related Stories

GARDENING GUIDES How to Pick a Mulch — and Why Your Soil Wants It

By Jocelyn H. Chilvers

There's more to topdressing than shredded wood. Learn about mulch types, costs and design considerations here

GARDENING GUIDES New Ways to Think About All That Mulch in the Garden

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

Before you go making a mountain out of a mulch hill, learn the facts about what your plants and soil really want

FALL GARDENING 5 Ways to Put Fall Leaves to Work in Your Garden

By Therese Ciesinski

Improve your soil and yard the organic way with a valuable garden booster that grows on trees

GARDENING GUIDES The Art of Green Mulch

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

You can design a natural garden that doesn’t rely on covering your soil with wood and bark mulch

GARDENING GUIDES 5 Things to Know About Weeding and Mulching Your Native Garden

By Oakley Gardens

What’s the best time to pull weeds? How thick should the mulch be? Here’s the scoop for a healthy landscape

GARDENING GUIDES 6 Healthy Ways to Handle Fallen Leaves

By Jocelyn H. Chilvers

Once nature's beautiful bounty is spent, these ecofriendly strategies for leaves will put your yard in the clear

GARDENING GUIDES What's Wrong With My Plant? Leaves Often Hold the Clues

By Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

Learn how to identify common plant ailments by reading their leaves

LANDSCAPE DESIGN Is It Time to Consider Fake Grass?

By J. Peterson Garden Design

With more realistic-looking options than ever, synthetic turf can be a boon. Find the benefits and an installation how-to here

GROUND COVERS Ground Force: 10 Top Ground Covers for Your Garden

By Carol Bucknell Garden Design

Protect your soil from weeds and drought this summer with a living mulch of ground covers

GARDENING GUIDES Great Garden Combo: 6 Beautiful Plants for a Shady, Wet Site

Transform a shade garden with moisture-loving golden grasses, textural leaves and a sprinkling of flowers

Sponsored

More Discussions

Controlling aphids indoors over winter on milkweed

8

Yellow spots on outdoor lime tree leaves

8

Help: Hollies Transplanted with Very Small Root Balls

11

Which bagged compost

2

Anyone ever buy Earthworms to add to your garden?

3