Mulching Mowers
Some mowers can be used without the box
Mulching lawn mowers do not have a box and literally double cut the grass so that the grass cuttings are fine enough to disappear quickly into the lawn. Therefore no time consuming box emptying. The downside of permanent mulch or re-cycle mowing is that you will always have a weed problem to some degree or other. If you have a worm problem expect it to get worse!
If this hasn't put you off then a mulching mower should be considered for several reasons:
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If reducing the grass cutting time is important to you
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If you are doing totally organic lawn care
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If the compost heap is a long way from the lawn
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If the lawn is so large that you can’t remove and dispose of the clippings
If none of these reasons is overly important then a quality cylinder or a rear discharge rotary lawnmower that the instructions allow to be used without bag or box can be used for light frequent lawn mowing without grass collection. If you do leave clippings make sure it’s just a light covering and they do not clump.
In summer this is a good way of helping the lawn conserve moisture. Grass clippings do not cause thatch but may cause problems if you already have a heavy thatch layer. See Checking for Lawn Thatch
Always collect the grass cuttings if weeds or weed grasses are seeding. Grass clippings are also attractive to worms so if you are bothered by a lot of worm casts or border land inhabited by moles then you had best collect the grass cuttings.
