After mowing, lots of leftover clumps of grass


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Old 05-11-16, 03:12 PM
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After mowing, lots of leftover clumps of grass

Normally my mower (an old/cheap riding mower) does a good job at mulching all the grass and there's barely anything to be seen left on the grass. Last couple of times however there has been a LOT of left over grass.

So, two questions;

1. How bad is it for the lawn to leave these clumps everywhere?
2. Any idea what could be wrong with the mower? I just had it turned up, blades sharpened... a month or so ago. One thing I've noticed is that with all the rain here lately the grass has been growing crazy fast. So even before it's been a week, the grass is really tall. So maybe there's just more than my mower can handle?

Thank you.
 
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Old 05-11-16, 03:32 PM
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I assume this is not a bagger?

If it is thick, it might turn the grass under it a little yellow but if you mow again next week it is no big deal. The grass was just too long and prolific. You could have set your mower deck a little higher to reduce the amount of clippings.

The pattern you mow will also have something to do with it. If you keep going around in a circle and keep blowing the clippings to one side only... you are going to have them pile up. Its usually better to throw the clippings to the side that has already been mowed... going counterclockwise rather than clockwise, for example.

Might have to mow a little more often until it starts to slow down.
 
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Old 05-11-16, 03:54 PM
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If your mower RPM is normal it is probably just normal spring grass growth. In the spring when the grass is really lush and thick mow with your deck set at the highest setting and mow more frequently. I noticed that you are in CT - me too. We have had a cool, wet spring and the grass is growing like mad. I am mowing twice a week with my deck at the highest setting (11). By late May I'll mow once a week with the deck set at 8 - that's the lowest I'll go.

While I normally stripe my yard, in the spring if the grass is high and thick I mow in a racetrack pattern. If there are a lot of clippings I use the mower to rake them and then finish raking by hand. If you have a large yard, bagging is not the answer. You'll end up spending more time emptying the bags then it would take to rake it.

Normally I leave the clippings on the lawn but whenever I get clumps of grass clippings I rake them up. If you leave them they are going to turn brown and leave your lawn looking like crap. Raking sucks but sometimes you just gotta' do it.
 
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Old 05-11-16, 04:42 PM
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Thanks all. Sounds like I need to mow more often this time of year... I did purposely use the higest setting but it didn't really help. Also, I went clockwise thinking that it would keep mowing over the clippings and they'd get smaller, but that didn't work. I'll try counter clockwise next time so they don't build up so much.

Thanks again!
 
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Old 05-11-16, 05:02 PM
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I put a recycling kit (that's what Toro called it anyway) on my mower about 15 years ago, and have been very pleased with it, but yes, there are times that it is not as impressive, and it's the direct result of mowing when the grass is wet or heavy, and/or when I have let it go too long between cuttings. The idea is that it lifts the clippings back up so that they run through the blades another time or two, but the airflow can only do so much, and heavier clippings aren't going to get sucked back up.
 
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Old 05-12-16, 03:07 AM
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I cut my acreage in a stripe and have little accumulation. I do think, however, adding Gator blades to my ZTR helped greatly. They seem to recut the grass before sending it out the chute, in a mulching manner. Pure mulching mowers, without a chute will accumulate grass in the blade area much more than one with a chute.
 
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Old 05-12-16, 04:20 AM
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I agree the grass being too tall when cut is the main culprit. My son has the same issue on his side yard, between being in a holler, low lying and his job it's hard for him to find it dry enough to cut so he often gets big deposits of clippings. They generally don't present any problems other than not looking the nicest.

Do you spray out the underside of your deck after each mowing? If too much grass is allowed to collect under the deck it will affect the mower's performance.
 
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Old 05-12-16, 05:47 AM
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Mowing

As Mark said, keep the underside of the mower deck clean to allow efficient discharge of the clippings.

Make sure the grass is completely dry before mowing. Mowing wet grass will increase chances of clogging.

As has been said, mow counter-clockwise to discharge clippings toward previously mowed area.

You can disperse the clumps with a leaf blower.
 
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Old 05-12-16, 06:53 AM
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Thanks again. I'll definitely go counter clockwise and try to clean under the mower.
 
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Old 05-12-16, 07:22 AM
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I mow between 2½ and 3 acres, and I often get a lot of clippings; but at this time of year, the Moose tend to be drawn to clean them up, especially if they have begun to ferment a little.

The rest of the year, I must have a large colony of earthworms that come up out of their burrows and remove the bulk of the clippings . . . . it's almost like clockwork.

And the worms bring along their castings and deposit them on top.
 
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Old 05-12-16, 08:20 AM
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Anything in particular you recommend for spraying the underside with? Too many options on Amazon/HD for me to figure out what to use...
 
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Old 05-12-16, 08:42 AM
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I use WD-40, grass doesn't hardly stick at all though you may have to scrape it clean once in a while.
 
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Old 05-12-16, 09:18 AM
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I'd just spray if off well with a garden hose after each use. Maybe scrub clean and repaint once a year if warranted. The main thing is to prevent/remove clods of grass that tend to collect under the deck.
 
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Old 05-12-16, 09:29 AM
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I "paint" the inside of my decks with used motor oil a couple times a years.
 
 

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