Drying lawn clippings

Looking for different ways to dry lawn clippings - Also how long to let dry - What to store it in.

Mow when your grass is a bit longer so you get a row, rake up what you need and put it on a elevated window screen to allow air flow for drying. To check hold some against your cheek to check for moisture.

If you have any farmers that green chop hay just get up on top of the chopper box sometime In August and gather up all the dry grass clipping you need.

I just pile mine up out in the yard. I don't even cover it. I just continue adding to the pile all summer and early fall and just leave it piled up and when I need some, I just remove the top inch or 2 and get it out of the way and get however much I'll need. Rain doesn't seem to affect it. We get alot of rain but we don't get much snow here in Tennessee like yall probably get in Maryland. Snow might mess ye up, I don't know.
Rickey

I've found that if I just store it in a container open to air (in my case mineral buckets for our cattle) I have little issues with it. If it's wet just dry it out on your driveway on a tarp or in a container on a warm summer day. I've noted if it's wet and sealed mold will form rendering it about useless. I don't even dry it anymore I just wait until the neighbor's yard is cut on a warm day with no moisture and start it out dry to begin with.

I spread it on my barn floor and after it is dry store it in a pile in the barn

Mow when grass is almost too tall. One pass going that way and the next pass going opposite way so that the mower builds a double windrow; let sun shine on it a couple days and rake when dry. Just treat it like hay.

I store the dry clippings in mesh onion sacks. This let's the air to circulate and keep from molding . I hang them in a building away from the elements. Your grocery store will have the bags for free, they usually throw them away.

There is something about a ball of sweet smelling dried grass clippings plugging a dirt hole that a coyote can't seem to resist.

I picked up some big burlap bags at our farm store that I store my clippings in. I rake and bag them up a couple of days after I mow. About once a mount I will pop a bag open and fluff it up. I store them in the rafters of my garage
J

I just mow sweep then bag the following day.yotes smell moldy grass on a daily basis! Ive never once saw a yote go around a brush hogged field because the grass molded. I've even used molded wax dirt with success. Just think about it a minute how many things in nature mold ?

those card board barrels work awesome for storing grass and leave clippings. I've got barrels 5 years old and look the same actually to dry.

I've pointed this out a few times in the past.
Animals afraid of mold or rusty metal or man stink couldn't survive in the lower 48 very long. Clean dry grass stored in a humidity free vacuum will start to mold as soon as it touches the atmosphere and the ground. Two nice dry days will give very nice dry clippings though and collecting in the heat of the day will get it at its best.

Mow towards your driveway on a hot day it will be dry enough to bag in few hours bag it up and you're done.

Good point. Might make me start using a “louder” bait during the time we block and everything is dying. I know it messes up the bird dogs when quail hunting.

I found a need this year in January. I just mowed it then so of course it was already dead and brown. It had a few fall leaves in it that I mowed in with it as well.

Those are my favorite kind of clippings half grass half leaves. They blend a set better then most every thing ive found

I dump it on a tarp and fluff it up for 2 days then store it in cheap 20 gallon totes.Pack it in and stack it. Smells like fresh hay when you open it up.

We run a bag on our mower. Place large black tarp out, dump mowed grass on hot black tarp, use rake to spread it out, rake again in an hour or tow, once bone dry bag up in large nylon bags, bags breathe, works great. Easy peasy.

Nafa bags are great for storing grass clippings. By the time you need your bags to ship fur you ought to be out of grass or it's dry enough to store it in nonbreathable containers.

Open weave large onion bags, go to a restaurant that does deep fried onion rings. They should have jute bags from potatoes as well.( these are magnets for mouse nest building)

Dry hasn't existed this summer. The farmers can't even make hay.

I trap a lot of hay fields and pastures that get bush hogged so just cut up some grass that's already there with an old pair of scissors.

so what are we using the grass clippings for?

Dirt replacement or blending in sets

Flat sets...

Pipe Dream Set

Most yards will dry it enough to store in direct sun.
For a 'fast' time, it's hard to beat a concrete drive way !

Shawnee, I do similar. All the farmers around here mow the sides of the road. Some grass is thinner stemmed, I use that. Just bag it in 50lb bird seed bags when dry and I store it in my basement. Come trapping season you can rip it apart by hand if needed. Pipe sets and grab and pull sets in grass areas. Works great.