What to do With All Those Fall Leaves

Ah, autumn. The changing colors, cooler air, and Halloween fun are a delight for the senses as the days get shorter and people are more inclined to make themselves cozy inside. But the leaves—the ones on the ground—are just…ugh. The raking, bagging, and haul off can make even the biggest fall fan long for the lazy days of summer.

Leaving them there is bad for your lawn and garden, breeding mold underneath and creating dead spots by blocking the sun, so removal is a must. Fortunately, there are a few clever ways to deal with leaves that will keep autumn from being a landscape maintenance nightmare:

  1. Mow them. With your lawnmower’s bag engaged, mow through the leaves, being sure to empty the bag frequently into a larger yard waste bag. Leaves are considered a solid waste by most municipalities, so proper disposal is important.
  2. Mulch them. Take the bag off and use your mower to chop them into small pieces that can biodegrade faster and provide fertilizer for your lawn. This may take a few passes with the mower (set it high to protect your grass!) but for some it might be less strenuous than raking.
  3. Tarp them. Use a large tarp laid out next to the area you’re working on and either blow the leaves onto the tarp with a leaf blower, or simply rake them on. Pull up the corners of the tarp and dispose into yard waste bags.
  4. Vacuum them. If your leaf blower has a vacuum setting and can be attached to a bag, this is a great way to get leaves up, especially out of tight corners and from under shrubs in your garden.
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When the work is done, check with your municipality to find out when collection days are and in what type of bags, if any, you should put your leaves. If the work is still daunting, call on a landscape maintenance company to help do your fall cleanup.

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Jorge CortezContractor and Owner
California Landscape Licensed Contractor. Having grown up right here in Santa Barbara, Jorge Cortez graduated from Dos Pueblos High School in 2007 and went on to join the United States Marine Corps. After completing a tour in Afghanistan and receiving an honorable discharge, Cortez continued his education at Santa Barbara City College. Today, with over fifteen years of experience in landscape maintenance, he combines his passion for the land with his business acumen as owner of SB Evolution Landscape.
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