Choosing a Mulching Lawn Mower

So you have decided that you would like the benefits that a mulching mower can give and must now set about choosing a mulching lawn mower. To recap the benefits include

• very finely cut lawn clippings that act as free lawn fertiliser that is high in Nitrogen - essential for green healthy grass.
• organic form of feeding the lawn.
• saved time in not having to apply lawn fertiliser seperately.
• saved time in not having to rake the lawn after each cut or empty the grass bag/box whilst mowing.
• reduced amounts of waste going into landfill sites.

What should you look for when choosing a mulching lawn mower?

As well as the points discussed in choosing a lawn mower, mulching mowers also have some extra functionality and requirements that should be assessed when looking to buy one.

Powered mulching lawn mowers cut the grass repeatedly to make the clippings smaller and then blow it back into the turf. These actions require extra energy compared to a standard lawn mower and so a mulching lawn mower should engine should have more power than a standard lawn mower engine. 5 horsepower is the low end of the power range for a mulching mower as anything much less than this will find it hard to cut the grass up finely enough especially if the grass is slightly overgrown.

What design approach has been taken to the mulching process? The design of the lawn mower blade and deck combine to produce the mulching process. The grass is stirred up and is cut repeatedly by the blade before being blown back into the turf. Some mowers have fans inside the deck of the mower to enhance the process. Some mulching mowers have special design features to help them contend with overgrown grass.

Can you attach a grass bag/box to the machine if you want to? This feature may be required if you want to collect the grass clippings / fallen leaves for use on the compost heap or so they can be used as a mulch elsewhere. This feature can also be useful if the lawn is very overgrown as this can reduce the effectiveness of the mulching process and mean larger and denser deposits of grass (not so finely chopped) are made on the lawn which can smother the grass underneath.

Build quality should also be a top priority when choosing a mulching lawn mower as your purchase should hopefully last for years. Check the length of the manufacturers guarantee. If the mower does ever break down can it be repaired where you bought it from or will it need to be sent off somewhere else? As with most things the more you pay the better the quality will be but if you shop around then you should be able to pick up a good value deal.