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Grass clippings are a constant in yard maintenance, but fall introduces falling leaves into the mix. Many years, the nuisance is worse because hurricanes or tropical storms defoliate more trees sooner. Leaves and lawn clippings not only are a nuisance to clean up, they are potentially a surface-water pollutant.
Leaves and lawn clippings are organic matter that naturally leaches nutrients and compost into soluble nutrients and minerals. Soluble products follow ground waters and especially surface waters to ponds and bayous.
Because these waters end up in aquifers, ponds and bayous, they must be protected from excess mineral or organic pollution. Excess organic products in waters reduce the dissolved oxygen levels of water, stressing or killing aquatic life.
With so much at risk, we advise following best management practices in dealing with loose landscape foliage.
- Never dump clipping or leaves into ditches, storm drains, lakes or bayous.
- When fertilizing the lawn, avoid spreading materials near waterways. Leave an untreated strip of seven to ten feet between the edge of the granule swath and the waterbody. If turf is thin and on steep slopes, allow even more space.
- Avoid blowing or spreading fertilizer or leaves and clippings onto walks, drives, roads or any hardscape. The debris generally ends up directly into storm drains and ditches. Instead, blow, sweep or rake this trash back into the lawn or carry it to a compost pile. The lawn will trap, hold and use those nutrients.
- Don't over fertilize your lawn with phosphorus. Mature turf needs only a low to moderate level of phosphorus. High soil phosphorus will promote new weed growth, waste money and threaten the surface waters.
If in doubt about your soil's fertility level, take a routine soil test. The LSU lab will run one for only $7. Take a representative composite sample to your LSU AgCenter's county agent's office for testing. Results are usually available in a couple of weeks.
Fertilize according to the soil test results and recommendations for best results and a cleaner environment. Also remember that our lawns are usually a warm-season type grass and will be going dormant soon in fall. They need their fertilizer during spring and summer when they are growing.