Lush green grass, a long-standing staple for yards, can be pretty to look at and fun to play on, but surprisingly tough on the environment.

Grasscycling is a simple solution, and involves nothing more than leaving your clippings on the lawn instead of disposing of them. The trimmed blades quickly and naturally break down, and serve as a natural fertilizer. It’s free, it’s easy, and produces no waste at all.

You will be grasscycling like a pro in no time with these key pointers:

• Before you start, make sure your grass is completely dry. Wet grass clippings will improperly ‘clump.’
• Keep your mower blades sharp.
• Use any mower to grasscycle. If your mower has an existing collection bag, remove it and properly cover the chute where trimmings would normally fly out.
• Cut no more than one third of the total length of the grass during each mowing. Your goal is to produce short clippings that fall in between the blades of grass. If your trimmings are too long, they will cover up your lawn, which may appear unsightly and prevent normal growth.
• Cut your grass frequently, especially in peak growing months, to keep your lawn and its trimmings at ideal lengths.

For more information on grasscycling, visit the CalRecycle website or watch this video.

Want to ditch your lawn and save water?

As an alternative to maintaining a grass lawn, many homeowners are replacing their lawns with water-and-time saving alternatives! Try looking into drought tolerant landscaping and native plants for your yard as an eco-friendly option for a low waste yard.