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Posted by dkhedmo on September 20, 2006, 9:12 pm
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very large yard, and many large, mature trees on our property as well as
the surrounding neoghbors'. I love autumn, love big piles of leaves,
love to play in the piles with the kids, etc. I have no aesthetic
problem with leaves being all over the place, prefer it, actually as it
is my favorite season and I am not that enchanted with the typical
suburban lawn scenario (which I intend to remedy on my own property over
time), and chose a property with woods at the back because we really
like to be near the natural beauty.
We are not in a new, fancy neighborhood with one of those associations
with rules, and as far as I can see while perusing the local ordinances
for various information regarding fencing and such, while being expected
to keep up the property to a reasonable degree, there is nothing
specific about cleaning up leaves. I don't know yet what the communal
expectations are for this neighborhood.
My question is, why does everyone generally work themselves into a
lather cleaning up the leaves? Is it damaging to the lawn or garden? I
would think the opposite would be true, in this 4-season climate.
My mother says that in her neighborhood, if the neighbor cleaned up
their leaves and you didn't do yours and they proceeded to blow over
onto the clean yard, there would be a problem. I'd prefer to just not
bother, again not out of laziness or whatever, but because I like them
and I don't really see the point.
-Karen-
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Posted by Kyle Boatright on September 20, 2006, 10:24 pm
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> We just moved into our first house. We have woods at the back of the very
> large yard, and many large, mature trees on our property as well as the
> surrounding neoghbors'. I love autumn, love big piles of leaves, love to
> play in the piles with the kids, etc. I have no aesthetic problem with
> leaves being all over the place, prefer it, actually as it is my favorite
> season and I am not that enchanted with the typical suburban lawn scenario
> (which I intend to remedy on my own property over time), and chose a
> property with woods at the back because we really like to be near the
> natural beauty.
>
> We are not in a new, fancy neighborhood with one of those associations
> with rules, and as far as I can see while perusing the local ordinances
> for various information regarding fencing and such, while being expected
> to keep up the property to a reasonable degree, there is nothing specific
> about cleaning up leaves. I don't know yet what the communal expectations
> are for this neighborhood.
>
> My question is, why does everyone generally work themselves into a lather
> cleaning up the leaves? Is it damaging to the lawn or garden? I would
> think the opposite would be true, in this 4-season climate.
>
> My mother says that in her neighborhood, if the neighbor cleaned up their
> leaves and you didn't do yours and they proceeded to blow over onto the
> clean yard, there would be a problem. I'd prefer to just not bother, again
> not out of laziness or whatever, but because I like them and I don't
> really see the point.
>
> -Karen-
Enough leaves can smother your grass. And the grass of your neighbors. And
their neighbors.
In addition, if you don't deal with the leaves when they come down, you'll
have to deal with most of 'em when your grass starts growing again in the
spring.
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Posted by Eggs Zachtly on September 20, 2006, 10:34 pm
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> We just moved into our first house. We have woods at the back of the
> very large yard, and many large, mature trees on our property as well as
> the surrounding neoghbors'. I love autumn, love big piles of leaves,
> love to play in the piles with the kids, etc. I have no aesthetic
> problem with leaves being all over the place, prefer it, actually as it
> is my favorite season and I am not that enchanted with the typical
> suburban lawn scenario (which I intend to remedy on my own property over
> time), and chose a property with woods at the back because we really
> like to be near the natural beauty.
>
> We are not in a new, fancy neighborhood with one of those associations
> with rules, and as far as I can see while perusing the local ordinances
> for various information regarding fencing and such, while being expected
> to keep up the property to a reasonable degree, there is nothing
> specific about cleaning up leaves. I don't know yet what the communal
> expectations are for this neighborhood.
>
> My question is, why does everyone generally work themselves into a
> lather cleaning up the leaves? Is it damaging to the lawn or garden? I
> would think the opposite would be true, in this 4-season climate.
You'll probably have to make the choice: A Lawn, or Leaves.
Sure, leaves add nutrients (very little though, without some green matter
mixed in) back into the soil, AFTER they break down. By themselves, they
take a LONG time to break down, especially if they're left whole. As they
build up, get wet (from rain, dew, snow, etc.), they mat down.
By then they'll be one really big mass of nothing but leaves, blocking out
all the things that the lawn (Remember the lawn? It's what's buried beneath
that big mat.) needs. Sunlight can't get in. Very little water can get in,
as it sheets off of the leaves. Oh, what doesn't evaporate or get drank by
some animal will eventually get there, but it will be far too little, far
too late. Forget about any food getting to the lawn. If water can't get
through, then there's very little chance of some little pellet making it.
Leaves make a good mulch because they block out light, water, and oxygen,
because they mat down. What makes them effective at blocking weeds, will
also be effective for blocking grass from growing.
Not to mention, that now that the turf grass is not dense enough to help
combat weeds, they'll be the first to thrive when the leaves are removed.
Unless of course you've got one heckuva cool season grass for a lawn, and
it can get thick again by spring. =)
It also makes a nice, dark "highway system" for unwanted pests to make
their way to even more unwanted places.
This was probably a really simplified answer, but I think you'll get my
meaning. You'd surely be able to keep the leaves around longer if you're
not really worried about a nice lawn, if you so choose. And if you *are*
worried about a nice lawn, then you'll probably find yourself doing more
rigorous lawn maintenance during the rest of the year to keep it that way.
JMO, but that's my story and I'm sticking to it. =)
HTH
--
Eggs
-Experience is a wonderful thing. It enables you to recognize a mistake
when you make it again.
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Posted by Jonny on September 21, 2006, 7:53 am
If you were Registered and logged in, you could reply and use other advanced thread options > We just moved into our first house. We have woods at the back of the very
> large yard, and many large, mature trees on our property as well as the
> surrounding neoghbors'. I love autumn, love big piles of leaves, love to
> play in the piles with the kids, etc. I have no aesthetic problem with
> leaves being all over the place, prefer it, actually as it is my favorite
> season and I am not that enchanted with the typical suburban lawn scenario
> (which I intend to remedy on my own property over time), and chose a
> property with woods at the back because we really like to be near the
> natural beauty.
>
> We are not in a new, fancy neighborhood with one of those associations
> with rules, and as far as I can see while perusing the local ordinances
> for various information regarding fencing and such, while being expected
> to keep up the property to a reasonable degree, there is nothing specific
> about cleaning up leaves. I don't know yet what the communal expectations
> are for this neighborhood.
>
> My question is, why does everyone generally work themselves into a lather
> cleaning up the leaves? Is it damaging to the lawn or garden? I would
> think the opposite would be true, in this 4-season climate.
>
> My mother says that in her neighborhood, if the neighbor cleaned up their
> leaves and you didn't do yours and they proceeded to blow over onto the
> clean yard, there would be a problem. I'd prefer to just not bother, again
> not out of laziness or whatever, but because I like them and I don't
> really see the point.
>
> -Karen-
You're bound to get one or two heavy winds between now and spring. Guess
where the leaves are gonna go? That's right, your neighbors place. If you
want to have the leafy lawn, get ya bout 5 acres and build the home in the
middle of it. Leave the land boundary natural.
In deeper end of fall, leaves lying on the grass is no big deal. In cooler
times, the grass would be going dormant anyway. If the grass is to survive
the following year, the leaves have to come off the ground substantially.
There is also a problem of downwind collection of leaves by shrub-like
foliage.
But existence of a lawn may not be the case here, and not mentioned. Do
have a lawn? Your immediate neighbors?
--
Jonny
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Posted by Eric in North Texas on September 21, 2006, 10:45 am
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Why not just mow them, it breaks them down to mulch, it isn't really
much work, it destroys their ability to take flight and annoy the
neighbors. I've been doing that for 40 years, and my lawn is better for
it.
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