Have you heard of "Raise the Blade?" It's a campaign to encourage landowners in the Lake Champlain Basin to raise their lawnmower blades to 3", to leave clippings on the ground to decompose in place, and to cut only ⅓ of the length of the grass blades in any one cutting. These practices, when done together, can help protect water quality over time by increasing soil health and minimizing stormwater runoff. A new 2-minute educational video is available to learn more about this at: https://lawntolake.org

As part of this campaign, landowners (ages 18+) in the Lake Champlain Basin can enter for a chance to win a free mulching mower! The drawing for the winner will be held on the anniversary of the signing of the Clean Water Act on October 18, 2021. Enter for a chance to win at: https://lawntolake.org/win-a-free-lawn-mower/

Please also consider sharing a photo of you or someone else "raising the blade" and following recommended practices. Email your photo to seagrant@UVM.edu or post it to Twitter or Instagram tagging Lake Champlain Basin Program, Lake Champlain Sea Grant, Lake Champlain Committee, and/or the Composting Association of Vermont using the #raisetheblade hashtag.