Raking And Mulching: Fall Maintenance
When it's time to take care of the leaves on your lawn, you're met with a couple of options. Leaf removal can be an arduous task if you're all on your own, but what's the best way to go about it? Well, McKuhen Lawn Maintenance is here to help you. We have all the info on the two ways you can handle leaf removal. Be sure to connect with our team today to learn more about leaf removal and other services that can benefit your lawn.
Raking
Raking is as simple as anything. You use a rake and gather the leaves into piles. Some people choose to bag the leaves and dispose of them, while others leave them in piles around the yard. For the benefit of your lawn, it is best to remove the leaves and not let them sit, smothering the lawn.
Benefits
Since the leaves are removed from the lawn entirely, there's no chance for the lawn to be smothered. Raking also does not require any heavy machinery. It's an easy enough lawn maintenance chore.
Cons
Raking can take a toll on your body. There's not only the constant motion of moving the rake back and forth over piles of leaves but also the bending over trying to push the leaves in bags. Some people choose to rake them onto tarps, minimizing the amount of raking into bags, but it's still a physically intensive chore when it all adds up.
Raking also takes a lot of time. If you have a big yard and tons of leaves, you might need to schedule a few days to get those leaves taken care of.
Mulching
Mulching is the process in which the leaves, wood, and other organic materials are cut up into smaller bits. You may have an attachment on a mower or combination leaf blower vacuum that processes the leaves for you.
Benefits
Mulching uses the natural qualities of the leaves as nutrients for your lawn. You can choose to bag the mulched leaves using a leaf blower vacuum or you can let the mulched leaves sit where they may. These leaves become small and organically-rich particles that will decompose and become food for your lawn. There is no risk of smothering your lawn, so long as the particles are spread evenly and not in thick layers.
Cons
If mulching is the way you want to go, you need to ensure that you're not mulching large quantities all at once. This means not letting the leaves accumulate to the point where they are unmanageable. Once you've mulched them, there's too much to know what to do with. Not to mention the fact that mulching too much and using them as mulch will provide too thick of a layer. It's best to mulch every now and then with manageable amounts of leaves.
