# Lawn mowing-bag or mulch in place? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 28, 2014, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507 "2014-05-28T22:03:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2014, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/21 "2014-05-29T19:44:56Z")
> [@Alpha\_Twit](#): > > A small part of what I mow is collected and used in my own compost pile. Even my tiny yard produces more clippings than I’ll ever need so most is mulched in place. I do have a concern about that though. Please understand that I’m not advocating any specific course of action and I’m fully prepared to be educated on why I’m wrong. > > I’ve been told by people who claim to know what they’re talking about that mulching in place tends to produce a layer of dead thatch and that by bagging and removing the clippings you can promote more airflow around the base of plants and through the soil, reduce some diseases and allow water to penetrate more easily. This is done at the expense of increasing the lawn’s watering needs and requiring a bit more chemical fertilizer. One person tried to convince me of the value of running a power dethatcher by doing a small section of my yard. He was pulling out loads of obviously dead material from the lawn and the grass did seem to grow a little better in that spot for the rest of the season. > > I’m just trying to knock the weeds down and I have no interest in the picture perfect ‘golf course’ lawn. I’m not going to spend money on another gas drinking yard machine to strip thatch and see no reason to change what I’m doing for the purpose of having a nice yard. IF I was looking for this kind of perfect green lawn though does bagging the clippings and stripping the thatch make sense? Thatch isn’t dead material, it’s a live, poorly formed root system which is too tight and too close to the surface. It’s caused by shallow watering, and by watering during the day when the water evaporates away quickly. Mulching actually helps prevent thatch by allowing water to soak in a little deeper and preventing evaporation. If you do have thatch, then yes, cutting it apart will help alleviate choking. But you have to change how you water if you want to keep it from coming back. ---
**Author:** ![Alpha\_Twit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpha_twit/32/265_2.png) [@Alpha\_Twit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpha_Twit)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2014, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/22 "2014-05-29T19:51:24Z")
> [@TruCelt](#): > > If you do have thatch, then yes, cutting it apart will help alleviate choking. But you have to change how you water if you want to keep it from coming back. I don’t water at all, it survives on rain water and morning dew alone. I guess that mean my lawn will have thatch and for the most part, I’m OK with that. ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2014, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/23 "2014-05-29T20:41:57Z")
> [@Alpha\_Twit](#): > > I’ve been told by people who claim to know what they’re talking about that mulching in place tends to produce a layer of dead thatch While there are plenty of people saying what you’ve been told, the research and asking around that I’ve done says that these people are either: 1. just plain wrong on every level 2. talking about a type of “mulching” technique that isn’t relevant anymore; today’s mulching mowers, if working properly, don’t leave pieces of grass that are big enough to thatch together. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2014, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/24 "2014-05-29T20:43:10Z")
> [@Alpha\_Twit](#): > > I don’t water at all, it survives on rain water and morning dew alone. I guess that mean my lawn will have thatch and for the most part, I’m OK with that. No, rain penetrates deeply. You should be fine. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2014, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/25 "2014-05-29T20:46:16Z")
I never bagged, but my wife started insisting. I just empty the bag in the woods, not really for my own compost needs. It’s not a big hassle, but we have a small yard ---
**Author:** ![Kimballkid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b5a626/32.png) [@Kimballkid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimballkid)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2014, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/26 "2014-05-29T20:59:52Z")
I picked ‘other’ because there’s no option for ‘Bag and haul to rubble site yourself’. I’ll bag it if it gets too long, but usually I just mow it with riding lawn mower with the side discharge. Therefore, in those instances, it would be ‘none of the above’. ---
**Author:** ![Dickerman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8baadc/32.png) [@Dickerman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dickerman)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2014, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/27 "2014-05-29T21:01:02Z")
I selected “Mulch in place”, but my new mower allows for both simultaneously. It’s able to send a variable percentage to the bag, which I do to please my wife. She gets to see me empty the bag from time to time and I get to mulch the majority. ---
**Author:** ![corkboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@corkboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corkboard)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2014, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/28 "2014-05-29T21:07:20Z")
Mulch. A sharp mulching blade will not produce clumps or long blades of cut grass; the mulching blade cuts the clippings nice and tiny. We have a full acre and if I stopped frequently to empty the bag/s, it would take hours to finish. Once you start leaving long strips of clumped grass, it’s time to sharpen your blades. Every week I’ll rake up a small pile of clippings and throw them into the compost pile, but otherwise I leave them where they lie and you can’t even see them. It usually takes a while for thatch to build up, and a dethatching every 3-5 years is all that’s necessary to eliminate it. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2014, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/29 "2014-05-29T21:49:04Z")
> [@Alpha\_Twit](#): > > A small part of what I mow is collected and used in my own compost pile. Even my tiny yard produces more clippings than I’ll ever need so most is mulched in place. I do have a concern about that though. Please understand that I’m not advocating any specific course of action and I’m fully prepared to be educated on why I’m wrong. > > I’ve been told by people who claim to know what they’re talking about that mulching in place tends to produce a layer of dead thatch and that by bagging and removing the clippings you can promote more airflow around the base of plants and through the soil, reduce some diseases and allow water to penetrate more easily. This is done at the expense of increasing the lawn’s watering needs and requiring a bit more chemical fertilizer. One person tried to convince me of the value of running a power dethatcher by doing a small section of my yard. He was pulling out loads of obviously dead material from the lawn and the grass did seem to grow a little better in that spot for the rest of the season. > > I’m just trying to knock the weeds down and I have no interest in the picture perfect ‘golf course’ lawn. I’m not going to spend money on another gas drinking yard machine to strip thatch and see no reason to change what I’m doing for the purpose of having a nice yard. IF I was looking for this kind of perfect green lawn though does bagging the clippings and stripping the thatch make sense? All you ever wanted to know about thatch. [http://plantscience.psu.edu/research/centers/turf/extension/factsheets/thatch](http://plantscience.psu.edu/research/centers/turf/extension/factsheets/thatch) > [@](#): > > Although some turf managers believe clippings contribute to thatch, little evidence supports this theory. However, if a thick thatch layer already exists, returning clippings can cause thatch increases. This may be due to the inability of decomposing microbes to persist in the upper thatch layer where clippings accumulate. I love the fact it is written by a “Professor of Turfgrass Science”. That’s a thing? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Why\_Child](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b782af/32.png) [@Why\_Child](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Why_Child)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2014, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/30 "2014-05-30T05:42:51Z")
I voted for “other,” simply because my answer is a bit of both. We have 2 lawn mowers, one that is a big mower - 48" deck, (is “deck” right? I think so…) it mulches and my boyfriend uses it to mow the back and side yard. The front yard is smaller, and he uses the mower with the bag to mow it; it has a smaller turning radius. I take the clippings from the bags and either put it into the compost, or bury it directly into the vegetable garden - between the plants, in order to let the worms at it, and it gets tilled in the next spring. As far as the grass quality goes, we have lived here 3 years, and I cannot tell any difference between the front, side, and back yard, so I’d have to say it doesn’t seem to matter much. I have been told to put a couple bags of grass clippings over my flower bed in the fall to enrich the soil, (and insulate the roots of the perennials,) but I tried that with tree leaves this past fall, and still had to rake them out this spring. I understand the grass clippings are smaller, and would decompose faster, but if anyone can tell me if I would have to rake out the excess in the spring, I’d appreciate it. 🙂 I believe grass clippings are higher in nitrogen, so that right there might be a plus…😕 ---
**Author:** ![doorhinge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a5b964/32.png) [@doorhinge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doorhinge)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2014, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/31 "2014-05-30T14:06:38Z")
> [@Why\_Child](#): > > …I have been told to put a couple bags of grass clippings over my flower bed in the fall to enrich the soil, (and insulate the roots of the perennials,) but I tried that with tree leaves this past fall, and still had to rake them out this spring. I understand the grass clippings are smaller, and would decompose faster, but if anyone can tell me if I would have to rake out the excess in the spring, I’d appreciate it. 🙂 I believe grass clippings are higher in nitrogen, so that right there might be a plus…😕 SMALL clippings. The smaller, the better. Run the mower with the bag, over the leaves, dump the bag back into the yard and mow/bag them again. They should be now be small enough to rapidly break down in the flower bed. If you chose to use grass clippings, start with the mower deck at a high(est) setting and reduce the height 1 setting for each repeated cutting. You’ll produce small, easily degradable clippings. Yes it takes time but you’re outside in the fresh air and getting some sun. 😃 I now use a Toro Ultra Blower Vac model 51599. It has a metal impeller which chops up small twigs and survives the occasional rock strike. And it turns dried leaves to dust very quickly. Plus, it blows at 235 mph and sucks 390 CFM. It’s a beast. [http://www.consumersearch.com/leaf-blowers/toro-ultra-blower-vac-51599](http://www.consumersearch.com/leaf-blowers/toro-ultra-blower-vac-51599) ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2014, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/32 "2014-05-30T14:40:46Z")
> [@Why\_Child](#): > > I have been told to put a couple bags of grass clippings over my flower bed in the fall to enrich the soil, (and insulate the roots of the perennials,) but I tried that with tree leaves this past fall, and still had to rake them out this spring. I understand the grass clippings are smaller, and would decompose faster, but if anyone can tell me if I would have to rake out the excess in the spring, I’d appreciate it. 🙂 I believe grass clippings are higher in nitrogen, so that right there might be a plus…😕 Decomposition could depend a lot on your region - moisture and temperature both play big roles. Leaves will decompose a lot faster if you’ve done some mulching of them first. Whole leaves that are just raked up tend to survive better in my garden than when I mow them up and dump the shredded leaves into the garden. Grass decomposes even faster than leaves. One option you might consider: instead of raking the leaves out in the spring, leave them in place and cover them with mulch or bark. This will let them finish decomposing in the warmer weather. ---
**Author:** ![elninost0rm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ed655f/32.png) [@elninost0rm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elninost0rm)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2014, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/33 "2014-05-30T14:43:10Z")
My mower mulches but I’m usually pretty lazy and the grass gets tall, so I use the side discharge. The blades must work well because I still don’t get THAT much clumping despite my laziness. It’s more of a “blanket” of clippings in most areas, so it is at least distributing it well enough. It was a $380 push mower, so I’m not surprised that it does a good job even with side discharge. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2014, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/34 "2014-05-30T14:44:27Z")
I mulch in place because my current home doesn’t have a compost pile. Once we move and I build a new one, I’ll start bagging and composting again. ---
**Author:** ![Pixel\_Dent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/bc8723/32.png) [@Pixel\_Dent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pixel_Dent)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2014, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/35 "2014-05-30T15:07:06Z")
In addition to the PSU citation already listed, Michigan State has done a lot of great work on this topic and their white papers are available online as well. The latest research shows that not only should you leave your grass clippings in place but you also should mulch your leaves in place. The important caveat, however, is that you need to get everything down to dime size pieces or smaller. In Florida we had some annoying tree whose leaves just couldn’t be picked up by the mower so we still had to rake them, but since we moved I haven’t touched a bag or a rake. ---
**Author:** ![Pixel\_Dent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/bc8723/32.png) [@Pixel\_Dent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pixel_Dent)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2014, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/36 "2014-05-30T15:19:26Z")
I mentioned to people here at work how 4 of the answers in this thread were “I bag, but only because my wife makes me.” We’re now curious about this gynocentric lawn bagging fetish. At least one person proposed that it was simply a way to keep their husbands out of the house for as long as possible, but I’m wondering if there’s more too it than that. Any theories? ---
**Author:** ![Sauron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce7236/32.png) [@Sauron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sauron)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2014, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/37 "2014-05-30T15:46:23Z")
> [@Pixel\_Dent](#): > > I mentioned to people here at work how 4 of the answers in this thread were “I bag, but only because my wife makes me.” We’re now curious about this gynocentric lawn bagging fetish. At least one person proposed that it was simply a way to keep their husbands out of the house for as long as possible, but I’m wondering if there’s more too it than that. Any theories? My guess is it’s a holdover - their fathers / ex-husbands / they themselves did it, and it’s “how it should be done.” That, or they think mulching creates the unsightly clumps of grass, and they don’t like how that looks. (Nor do I, so I can understand that mindset, even if it’s not correct.) ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2014, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/38 "2014-05-30T16:44:26Z")
Thank you very mulch. ---
**Author:** ![nate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nate/32/13085_2.png) [@nate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nate)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2014, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/39 "2014-05-30T17:11:57Z")
> [@Pixel\_Dent](#): > > I mentioned to people here at work how 4 of the answers in this thread were “I bag, but only because my wife makes me.” We’re now curious about this gynocentric lawn bagging fetish. At least one person proposed that it was simply a way to keep their husbands out of the house for as long as possible, but I’m wondering if there’s more too it than that. Any theories? Mine wants me to bag because she believes it helps with the kids not tracking in grass when they come inside. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2014, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507/40 "2014-05-30T17:19:36Z")
> [@nate](#): > > Mine wants me to bag because she believes it helps with the kids not tracking in grass when they come inside. That was going to be my suggestion. Little bits of grass in Summer, little bits of dead leaves in Autumn, little bits of x-mas tree needles in Winter, little bits of Easter Basket Grass in Springtime, these are the bane of a housewife’s existence. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lawn-mowing-bag-or-mulch-in-place/689507.md?page=3)