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From: rbc@cuuxb.ATT.COM (~XT6511100~Rick Clark~C24~H15~6011~)
Newsgroups: sci.bio,sci.environment
Subject: Re: Is Mowing your Lawn bad for the Environment?
Keywords: lawns, oxygen production
Message-ID: <2876@cuuxb.ATT.COM>
Date: 31 May 89 21:46:06 GMT
References: <24792@agate.BERKELEY.EDU> <20388@uflorida.cis.ufl.EDU>
Reply-To: rbc@cuuxb.UUCP (Richard B. Clark)
Followup-To: sci.bio
Distribution: usa
Organization: AT&T, Data Systems Group, Lisle, IL
Lines: 33

In article <20388@uflorida.cis.ufl.EDU> ajw@manatee.cis.ufl.edu (Andy Wilcox) writes:
> * If possible, blow your grass over your yard, and let it decompose
>   there.  Raw grass contains a sizeable portion of nitrogen that is
>   returned to soil by this method.  Leaving grass on the lawn does
>   not cause thatch, which is most commonly caused by over
>   fertilization. 


I do not bag my clippings, and I have a dog that "selectively fertilizes"
my lawn, so I have a some good first hand data on thatch vs. fertilization.

FACT MODE ON:
On my lawn (northern Illinois clay in almost full sun):
	No fertilizer == thatch.
	Good fertilizing == no thatch.
	Over fertilizing == no grass.

FACT MODE OFF, PONTIFICATION MODE ON:

Grass clippings return nitrogen to a dense stand of grass.
Grass clippings speed the thatching rate of a sparse stand of grass
without returning much nitrogen to the soil (it is released to the
air instead of the soil by the sunlight exposure).

Partial shade also beats thatch in my lawn.
I suspect watering copiously and regularly would too.

I think manicured lawns are silly for this part of the country too,
but I also think it is important not to spread misinformation, regardless
of the cause.
-- 
=Richard B. Clark
 Lisle, IL       ...!{att,lll-crg}!cuuxb!rbc  OR cuuxb!rbc@arpa.att.com