Tax dollars hard at work
Mulching leaves into the lawn is tremendously beneficial for several reasons:
- provides organic matter to the soil (good for nutrient and moisture retention, alleviates compaction, and improves drainage in the long term)
- provides the lawn with many nutrients that are difficult and expensive to supply otherwise… Particularly, but not limited to, all of the micronutrients. (Trees are just way better at taking up nutrients than grasses are)
- is an incredibly effective form of pre-emergent weed control… Extremely effective for preventing broadleaf weeds, and can even prevent/reduce future poa annua and crabgrass.
According to MSU, up to 6 inches of leaves can be mulched into a lawn at one time. That number partially depends on your mower performance… But even in the worst case scenarios, it might just mean going over the leaves multiple times. (Still quicker than raking or bagging)
Tips for mulching leaves effectively:
- go into fall at a high mowing height… Its too late to change that now, but it helps.
- use an actual mulching blade (most new push mowers come equipped with mulching blades. Mulching blades are the ones with the curved cutting edge and the blade has curved surfaces on top to generate uplift)
- plug the side discharge chute. Push mowers usually have a flap that’s easily closed. Riding mowers often require a separate accessory to plug the chute.
- don’t let the leaves pile up. Most of the time, weekly will be enough, but if you have windy days, you might need to get out there an extra time or more.
- do it when the leaves are mostly dry. It can actually help if they’re a LITTLE wet… But dry is certainly better than too wet.
- if you notice clumps of matted leaves… Knock them loose. I usually just kick them, but a rake or blower works too.
- Yes you can safely mulch pine needles and walnut leaves. It’s a myth that pine needles acidify soil. There’s insufficient proof that juglone from walnut trees is actually allelopathic… Regardless, spread out over a lawn, that wouldn’t be a concern.
The classic argument against mulching is “they’ll smother the grass”… Simply put, if you smother the grass, you’re doing it wrong (especially that last step)… Unless you’ve got a lot of poa trivialis or poa annua… Mulching leaves can actually smother those… In which case, that’s usually a good thing… But even then, they’ll still fill back in next year.
Note: Don’t mulch leaves if you plan on dormant seeding… The weed prevention thing I mentioned above also applies to ungerminated grass seed.
Just take to curb? They vacuum? Seems a pretty easy way unless it’s a windy day, then start over.
Zen said:
Just take to curb? They vacuum? Seems a pretty easy way unless it’s a windy day, then start over.
They do this in my town. People pile up leaves for 3-4 weeks before the scheduled pickup. The wind is surprisingly fine. Some leaves get blown around, but most do not. And even the ones that do, often end up in other people’s leaf piles.
I switched to mulching, but it worked fine for me before I gained the wisdom.
Zen said:
Just take to curb? They vacuum? Seems a pretty easy way unless it’s a windy day, then start over.
Everyone just blows them to the curb here and they blow into my yard because I’m at the end of the street. More mulch for my lawn.
@Mal
We have that service here in Newport News, VA. It used to be 3x during the fall winter season. Budget cuts and post-Covid life have reduced it to just once a year now. It’s great to just blow or drag the leaves to the street. Only sucks when it rains and the leaves aren’t picked up on schedule because it clogs the curb run-off.
@Robin
The awesome thing is that the city (NN,VA) does use this and doesn’t just burn or bury it.
@Mal
*Bottom of the hill.
Zen said:
Just take to curb? They vacuum? Seems a pretty easy way unless it’s a windy day, then start over.
It’s wild but once you put the leaves in windrows along the street they stay there. A few blow around sure, but the pile kind of interlocks and holds itself together.
Zen said:
Just take to curb? They vacuum? Seems a pretty easy way unless it’s a windy day, then start over.
I had this at my old house. Rake to curb and they get vacuumed up garbage day. It was so nice. Until the one year with a freak early snow storm on garbage day. Plows came through and just made an absolute mess that year with leaves churned up in the snow. It lasted all winter. At some point in spring the city sent out street sweeps to clean it all up.
Look at what they have to do to mimic a fraction of our power.
Pax said:
Look at what they have to do to mimic a fraction of our power.
No, no I think it is in reverse. I wonder what the science is on the vacuum power for that machine, vs yours.
@Zen
I see all these people with their whole families out raking and blowing. I see this big truck coming.
And I am just sitting there, on my mower, mowing.
@Zen
I want to make a Dark Helmet costume, not for Halloween, but for the following weeks when the Suck Truck comes rolling through.
Ellis said:
@Zen
I want to make a Dark Helmet costume, not for Halloween, but for the following weeks when the Suck Truck comes rolling through.
Would be hilarious.
I imagine the city does a big party back at HQ with employees jumping into giant leaf piles.
Leo said:
I imagine the city does a big party back at HQ with employees jumping into giant leaf piles.
Leo said:
I imagine the city does a big party back at HQ with employees jumping into giant leaf piles.
My city mixes them with branches that also get picked up and turned into mulch. In the spring I go pick up a couple truckloads of mulch for free.
Leo said:
I imagine the city does a big party back at HQ with employees jumping into giant leaf piles.
The ones around me these things basically bail them into (very) heavy masses.
This is just deferred compost.