First Cutting of the Greensward in 2022

We do not have a lawn. There wasn't much of a lawn when we moved here and we quickly decided it had to go and be replaced with trees and plants.

Lawns require a level of care and maintenance that far outweighs their usefulness, in our opinion, and they are severely lacking in biodiversity. That is not to say lawns are bad per se; they can be great as a childrens' playground, croquet pitch, badminton court, cricket square, etcetera, etc. And if you're not 'into' gardening then it may be a simpler option and far better than paving over the garden.

We are, however, grateful to our next-door neighbours for donating their grass cuttings so I can compost them. I will discuss the value of grass mowings in the composting cycle in future posts.

Yesterday, we received the first cutting of the year from our neighbour's turf: 27th February 2022. My first thought was that this seemed early. Checking my 'compost' records, where I note the types of material added to my hot composting bins, I discovered the first cut in 2020 was 19th March while for 2021 it was 15th March. So my first thought was indeed correct; this year's first greensward cut was, by two to three weeks, the earliest recorded (albeit, the record only goes back to 2020!).

This is another example of phenology. Obviously, the record is too short to draw any conclusions at the moment but it may be a useful proxy for changes in weather and climate.