Using Lawn Clippings as a Weed Barrier

I conducted a experiment a few years to back to determine the effectiveness of typical lawn clippings as a weed barrier in a 12x12 foot garden space. The space had been prepared for planting as follows,

1. Area designated that needed to be tilled
2. Plot was tilled using gasoline rototiller
3. Layed out garden rows and planted corn, tomatoes, beets, green beans, carrots, cucumbers, zucchini in garden
   
   

With the space prepared the next step was to procure the grass clippings. I waited for the lawn to grow extra long and shaggy and then cut it and allowed the clippings to air dry on the lawn. Before laying the mulch I did do some weeding of some of the more robust dandelions and thistle plants since at this stage they were bigger than most of my seedlings After the clippings had dried I raked them up and began to to place them in between the rows of seedlings. I placed about 8 inches of grass clippings evenly throughout the garden plot which covered all of the existing weeds that remained.

What I found out this time.

Over the course of the growing season I did continue to weed in the garden rows themselves. Since I could not place a thick enough grass mulch layer between my closely growing beans carrots and beets to prevent them from growing. My weeding demands were reduced greatly by the application of the grass mulch when compared to the neighboring plots. I did have issues with the more robust thistle pushing through the mulch layer but this was easily remedied by just a little bit of manual weeding with a garden trowel.

What I feel I can conclude at the end the this quickly done and frankly not very scientific experiment
is that the grass mulch did aid in reducing my weed pressure in my garden. A couple things I will change when I do it again is keep up the thickness of the mulch. Over the course of the summer my grass compacted down to about 1 inch or less in thickness and this did not provide some of the benefits I was looking for.

 

What I will change for the next time.

I would also like to start the process the fall before if possible and apply some straw along with the grass clipping in a very thick layer. This thick mulch would slow up planting in the spring but if done correctly it should smother most if not all weeds and greatly reduce the amount of weeding a person has to do. This mulch would also provide a steady source of organic nutrients, water retention and provide habitat for beneficial insects to thrive rather than the sterile relatively lifeless environments most people work with.

I believe that mulch can and should be a healthy part of any garden and if used correctly is go to method for solving a lot of garden woes from nutrient and weeds all the way to pest problems.

Until next time my fellow environmentalists

Josh

View from railroad bridge located in NW corner of Grand Forks County North Dakota