paula forte asked 17 years ago
are grass clippings suitable to use as a mulch on privet, hornbeam and yew hedges? The hedges are quite young and i am trying to keep them weed free.
1 Answers
Gerry Daly Staff answered 7 years ago
Grass clippings are not a great mulch for weed control on hedges as they contain a lot of grass seeds and other weeds. These eventually germinate and can cause problems. The grass clippings break down to provide nutrients and the weeds can get a lot of these.
The other possibility is for a slimy breakdown of the grass when too much is put on and this can cause oxygen starvation of the roots and also scorching of the roots … so for a variety of reasons, grass clippings are not a good mulch for hedges or shrubs. Compost them separately and they as not as damging but can still encourage weeds.
