Mulching Lawnmowers
Mulching Lawnmowers
Mulching lawnmowers are a relatively new introduction to the UK having been popular in the USA for many years. Essentially, a mulching (or recycling) mower is designed to cut the grass and pass the clippings through the cutting cycle many times before discharging them back into the lawn surface. The design of the lawnmower deck allows for the correct airflow required to suspend the clippings within a vortex whilst they become finely chopped.
When grass clippings are returned to the lawn, they decompose and release nutrients back into the soil helping to fertilize the grass.
Mulching Lawnmowers - Pros & Cons
If you have a large lawn, a petrol mulching lawnmower could be a good choice because large quantities of grass clippings cannot be composted easily without partially drying them first. When added straight to the compost pile in quantity, fresh grass clippings can create a wet sludge which will ruin the existing mixture. Returning the clippings to the lawn will help keep you lawn looking healthy and can help reduce the amount of fertilizer used.
Mulchiing lawnmowers are not suitable for cutting long grass unless there is an option to collect the clippings. Discharging large amounts of grass clippings at once will smother the lawn causing yellow patches. Large clumps of clippings will also encourage worm activity if allowed to get wet. Increased worm activity produces more worm casts - an ideal place for weeds to set seed. If there are weeds present in your lawn, a mulching lawnmower will contribute to spreading the weeds to other areas of your lawn.
The decision wether or not to purchases a mulching lawnmower ultimately depends on how often you are able to mow your lawn and the composting facilities you currently have in your garden. If there is likely to be long periods where you cannot mow (7-10 days during summer) it’s a good idea to get a mower with grass collection box so you can remove the large amount of clippings. For smaller gardens, electric mulching lawnmowers are available.
Bear in mind that mulching mowers featuring grass collection capabilities will not mulch as efficiently as dedicated machines that only discharge back onto the lawn surface. There will always be a compromise between the different airflow requirements for processing clippings and collecting clippings - no single machine can do both brilliantly.
Mulching Blade Attachments
There are a number of cheap blade attachments designed to offer mulching capabilities to conventional lawnmowers. In reality, these attachments tend to produce poor results when compared to a dedicated mulching lawnmower which will have a special deck design for correct airflow plus a unique mulching blade.
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