How Does Mulching Lawn Mower Work? 

Having a well-maintained lawn is important to the appearance of your home and property, as well as the health of your grass. Mulching mowers can help you maintain a healthy, manicured lawn all year long.

The question of whether to use a standard mower or a mulching mower is one many homeowners face. In this blog post we will look at how a mulching lawn mower works. By the end you will be able to answer the question for yourself.

What Are Mulching Lawn Mowers?

Simply put, a mulching lawn mower has no discharge. the grass and leaves are cut with the blade multiple times to turn them into smaller pieces.

Lawn mulching mowers are a good alternative for those who want to avoid the hassle of bagging clippings. This method allows grass clippings to decompose and fertilize the lawn at the same time.

Mulching Lawnmower Vs. Regular Lawnmower?

Typical lawn mowers will cut the grass and send the clippings out an opening on the side of the mower deck. Mowers can also send the clippings into a bag mounted on the mower.

The blades for a mulching mower are different. They not only cut the grass, they create air flow that circulates the grass under the deck to cut it into smaller pieces.

Blades Difference

Mower blades for mulching have bends and curves which allow airflow, unlike regular mowers. This design feature allows the mulching lawnmowers to circulate grass clippings on their mower deck. The mower can cut the grass repeatedly until it is smaller and finer.

The blades on a regular lawn mowers have a different job: to discharge the clippings out the discharge on the side or into a bag mounted on the back of the mower.

Deck Design Difference

The deck is designed to allow for the creation of airflow. Some mulching mowers even have adjustable baffles to change the way the air flows under the deck to improve the process.

Sharp Distinction

The blades of a mulching mower must be kept sharp. A dull mower blade of any kind will rip the grass instead of cutting it.

Different Functions

There are a lot of mowers that can perform mulching, bagging and have a side discharge. Not all at once, though.

I own a Toro Recycler 22. It has a bag attachment in the rear. If I choose I can remove the bag and it automatically becomes a mulching mower. There also a panel on the side that, if removed, turns the mower into a side discharge mower. My mower offers all the options I need for dealing with grass and leaves, plus it’s self propelled and very easy to start.

How Does Mulching Benefit You and Your Lawn?

Mulching offers a variety of benefits to improve the health and appearance of your lawn:

Mulching Helps Retain Soil Moisture

The mulched grass and leaf clippings will lay on top of the soil. This will keep the sun and wind from coming in direct contact with the soil. These clippings will dramatically slow the evaporation process which lowers the need for watering as often.

Mulched Grass and Leaves Help Fertilize Your Lawn

Since the clippings are cut into such small pieces, they will breakdown quickly and the nutrients they contain will go back into the soil and feed your lawn.

Mulching Can Save You Money

If you bag your grass and leaves they will begin to pile up quickly. You will need to dispose of them by paying someone to pick them up or taking them to a lawn waste recycling center. Also, since you are removing valuable nutrients with each bag of clippings, you will need to fertilize more often.

Mulching Saves You Time

Mulching lawnmowers save time. First, if you bag your clippings, you have to empty the bag multiple times. You also have to do something with the bags after you’re done mowing. Second, if you have a side discharge mower, you have to rake up the clippings so they won’t lay on top of your grass and kill it.

When you mulch, you just mow the grass and you are done!

It is Good for the Environment

As stated earlier, mulching the grass clippings and adding them back to the soil will reduce your fertilizer needs. Less fertilizer means less chance of it being washed out of your lawn and into nearby streams and lakes. Mulched clippings can help to build soil over time, and help reduce erosion.

When Is Mulching Best?

• Mulching mowers will work most efficiently when you are cutting on a regular basis.
• After putting down any lawn treatment. If you bag your clippings after applying fertilizer, you will suck a lot of fertilizer as well.
• When your lawn has a good, healthy layer of grass. Keeping the grass mulched will maintain its health
• In the fall, when the leaves are on the ground. Running a mulching mower over the leaves will reduce them to fine particles. In some cases, if the leaves are very dry, the mulcher will turn the leaves to dust.

When Is a Mulching Mower a Bad Idea?

• If your lawn has weeds, mulching will only spread the weed seeds to other places in the yard.
• Wet grass will hinder the mulching process. The grass is too heavy to be blown around and sliced multiple times. It will only create clumps of cut grass. Plus, the mower will struggle with all the grass under the deck just spinning around.
• Tall grass can be a problem too. This is kind of the same as wet grass only it is the amount of grass that is causing the problems. If the grass is too tall, try to do a side discharge mowing or mow a very narrow strip on each pass.

Proper Maintenance of Mulching Mower is Critical

Clean Under the Deck

All mower decks must remain clean to prevent the accumulation of rotten grass. This can disrupt the air flow and lower the efficiency of the mulching process. It can also cause damage to the mower deck.

Keep Your Blades Sharp

Mulching will reduce the effectiveness of regular mowing by reducing the contact time between the blade and the grass. Mulch can cause blades to become duller faster than regular mowing.

Maintain the Engine

In order for your mower to last a long time, you must do routine maintenance. This includes:

• Cleaning or changing the air filter – proper air flow for the motor will help keep it running at peak performance
• Replacing the spark plug on gas powered mowers
• Cleaning the fuel system by using a fuel additive or draining the fuel tank and refilling with fresh fuel

Conclusion

Mowing the lawn is a summer tradition for many people, and there are many ways to go about it. Some people choose to use a standard lawn mower, while others may use a mulching lawn mower. A mulching lawn mower is designed to chop up the grass clippings and leaves and spread them back into the yard as fertilizer. This is a more environmentally friendly option than using a standard lawn mower, which sends the clippings and leaves directly into the landfill.