Remember how last year was the first year you had to take care of the lawn? Remember how it took forever for the leaves to fall? And how the weather was off-and-on warm and cool? So you didn't rake the leaves right away?
This year, remember a couple of things to make this task easier:
- Keep the grass shorter going into the fall. The long grass meant that raking the leaves was almost more like combing the leaves.
- Rakes are for suckers. Leaf blowers for the win! But seriously, get the leaves into a few piles and then suck them up and dump them into the biodegradable leaf bags the county makes you use.
- Buy lots of the stupid biodegradable bags. in 2011 you used 12 just to do the front yard. And hopefully someone will invent bags that are easier to open. Those oversized grocery bags are a pain.
- Don't worry about the leaves that are still up on the trees all over the neighborhood. You have to start somewhere, right? And who knows if those leaves are ever going to fall?
- Save your pennies and get a mulching mower! Or, better, hire some poor sucker to do it for you.
Best,
Dana and Emily of 2011