When homeowners think of waste management, they tend to think only of the garbage in their home. Between separating their garbage bins and investing time into their recycling efforts, it’s easy for them to forget about yard waste.
But the best thing is that what you may think is considered trash in your yard is actually able to be reused and recycled. In particular, we’re talking about grass clippings. Here are some interesting things you can do with grass clippings to keep them out of your garbage bins.
- Leave them on the lawn
There’s nothing worse than having to rake up grass clippings after you’ve spent a good chunk of time mowing the lawn. However, this may actually be a waste of your time as you are stripping the grass of important nutrients it may need! Short clippings can break down into the grass very easily, making a free fertilizer for you to use. To make sure this happens properly, only clip off about one-third of the blade of grass every time you mow. - Add to your compost bin
This goes along with the same idea as mentioned above. Adding grass clippings to your compost pile will help with the breaking down of all the organic matter you are collecting. - Make tea for your plants
Your houseplants shouldn’t be robbed of these essential nutrients as well! So what you need to do is gather your clippings and then let them steep in water for a few days. Strain, and pour this “tea” on your plants and watch them thrive. - Add to your mulch
Mulch is used to help suppress weeds and to keep the soil cool. But mulch can sometimes be unsightly, so adding grass clippings will make your garden look more natural if you so choose.
Up to $11.5 billion is spent every year cleaning up litter, but your grass clippings don’t have to be a part of this equation. It is easy to think of your grass trimmings as your yard’s litter, but this is not true. Grass clippings can be exceptionally beneficial for many different reasons, so make sure to clean up this yard waste and reuse it into something effective!
