Three effective ways to get rid of leaves

“So, how do I get rid of all of the leaves in my yard – fast?”

While every yard and situation is different, here are three effective ways to handle the annual fallen-leaf overload in your yard:

1. Mulch. Mulch. Mulch the leaves as much as possible.

Cut up into fine clippings, leaves provide a free, nutrient-packed fertilizer for your lawn. Install a mulching blade on your lawn mower and make the most of those fallen leaves by mowing over short layers of leaves. Be sure to enter your lawn mower’s model number to find a mulching blade that’s recommended by the manufacturer.

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2. Equip yourself with the right tools for more efficient leaf removal.

Use a simple, fan-shaped rake a few times per week to gather leaves. As you would do with snow removal, keep up on the leaf accumulation and avoid overload later this fall. Make reaching leaves in shrubbery, gutters and other hard-to-reach places significantly easier with a leaf blower.

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3. Contact your local municipality and inquire about township/city or county-level leaf recycling or disposal programs.

Many cities and townships have programs in place for community leaf removal. This often includes curbside pickup of biodegradable bags filled with leaves and yard debris. When bagging leaves and other organic yard debris, always use compost bags in lieu of plastic bags. Over time, the bags will decompose, enabling the contents inside to do so, too.

In some regions, residents are encouraged to push their leaves into piles in the street beside their property. Then, street-sweeping fleets vacuum up leaves and deliver to a facility, where the leaves are transformed into nutrient-packed compost and then made available for little to no cost to residents when spring arrives.

Remember, time is of the essence

Keep up on the leaf removal a few times per week. Don’t wait until the end of fall to handle the leaves. It’s important to remove leaves because come winter and snowfall, the leaves will become a soggy, smothering, damaging blanket over your lawn.