Grass clippings are always a 'green' regardless of age. ;) Their C/N ratio falls only a bit even when dried and remains well on the nitrogen side of the line.

But enclosed in a bag they will quickly turn mushy and stink. Better to stockpile them in the open air and then mix in carbons (browns) as they become available. If you must store them in the bags then make sure it is someplace dry and punch lots of air holes in the bags.

Dave

I use my grass only on the day it was cut. I sometimes use neighborhood Yard bags containing grass. I try to use them within two days of their being cut and bagged, but it is impossible to be certain of the dates.

Odor and appearance are the main tips on how long the grass has been bagged. A very strong amnonia (sp) odor is an good indication to leave the bag. Also a change of color from bright green to pale yellow-green is an tip that the bag is past its I-want-it date.

Loose grass is much easier to mix into my compost piles than a bag of two or three day grass that is already bunching up.

That kind of depends on how the grass is stored. Grass clippings in almost any size pile, because to the C:N ratio, will be digested by the bacteria that do that kind of thing fairly rapidly, if conditions are close to waht they need, enough of a food source, enough moisture, and enough air. The "stink" that arises from a pile of grass clippings is nutrients escaping to the atmosphere and that simply means the conditions are right for the bacteria to get to work.
Replicate the conditions that hay is cured and the nutrients of that grass will be stabilized and held for a fairly long period of time.

Some time ago I collected some links to How long Grass Clippings have 'N'.

Thanks everyone, for your responses / links! Looks like I'll have to do some thinking on a plan of attack / scrounge up a significant amount of browns.

Scrounging is fun. ;) Or you could just buy a bale of straw (not hay) to mix with them. Cardboard? Shredded paper?

Dave

Yeah, I have an old file cabinet that needs cleaned out, and a collection of empty boxes old phone books and a few newspapers laying around. I was thinking to shred everything and see how much I end up with. But, I think I'll still end up with not nearly enough. A bale of straw....that's a pretty good amount once it's uncompressed. I'll have to look for a cheap local source.

Thanks!!

Forget to mention sawdust too. It's one of the best carbons. Local sawmill? Lumber yard? Just no CCA stuff. Wood chips is another option.

Dave