Removing leaves by raking or wielding a leaf blower is a pain — and quite literally can cause back or shoulder pain. Other options include using a mulching lawn mower or hiring a leaf removal crew.
So what’s the best way to remove leaves from your yard? That may come down time and money.
- Time: Can you spend a weekend day or two raking (slow) or hours blowing leaves (fast)?
- Money: Can you afford to buy a mulching lawn mower (if you don’t have one) or hire a Lawn Love crew for leaf removal? Lawn Love’s average cost of leaf removal ranges from $60 – $85.
Whatever you decide, you need to get rid of the thick layer of leaves covering your grass, sidewalk, driveway, and even your flower beds. If left on your lawn, leaves will block sunlight from reaching your grass and can lead to lawn diseases.
In this article, we’ll cover your leaf removal options.
Chances are you already have the leaf removal tools in your garage, and if you don’t, you can easily find them at a hardware or home improvement store.
Let’s get started:
1. Rake leaves (this is time consuming and tiring)
A leaf rake will get those leaves out of your yard as well as twigs, grass clippings, and anything else, but raking is back-straining work.
To make raking easier, choose a rake with an ergonomic handle and a lightweight design. If your leaf rake isn’t comfortable to hold and use, it will increase the strain on your shoulders and back, making leaf removal much harder than it needs to be.
Choose a leaf rake with a wide end. The wider your rake, the more leaves you can pick up with every sweep.
Pros of leaf rakes:
- Efficient
- Versatile
- Durable
- Good for long-term use
Cons of leaf rakes
- Difficult for beginners
- Not great for large areas
- Potential risk of injury
2. Blow leaves into piles with a leaf blower
Leaf blowers are easy to use — and, in many cases, extremely noisy.
Check your local ordinances before buying a leaf blower, as cities and states are increasingly banning gas-powered lawn care equipment because of their emissions, so you may need to look into purchasing an electric leaf blower. Some cities restrict leaf-blowing times because of the noise.
Pros of leaf blowers:
- Saves time
- Efficient
- Can also be used as a snow blower
- Easy to use
Cons of leaf blowers:
- The wind can blow leaves back in to your yard
- Can be expensive
- Make a loud sound
- Require regular maintenance
- Blows dust and dirt into your eyes and nose
- Heavy
3. Suck up leaves with a leaf vacuum
Leaf vacuums, also knows as yard vacuums, are machines that suck up leaves and debris into a collector bag that can then be unloaded later. They are available as handheld, and as attachments to your lawnmower or tractor.
The leaf vacuum attaches to your mower by using a mower deck adapter, a hitch, and a deck hose. All of these parts can be custom fit to your mower. This powerful tool can make cleaning leaves out of your lawn much easier and convenient.
Pros of leaf vacuums:
- Variety
- Efficient
- Convenient
- Powerful
Cons of leaf vacuums:
- The bags can only hold so much at a time
- Can only mulch lightweight debris
- Noisy
- Creates a lot of dust
4. Chop up leaves with a mulching lawn mower
Mowing over leaves with a mulching lawn mower can create a nutritional, organic mulch for your grass that provides all-natural fertilization during the fall and winter months.
You don’t necessarily have to own a mulching lawn mower. Depending on the type of lawn mower you have, you can set your mower to “mulch” when you want to mulch your leaves. This setting works best with dry leaves if your grass is at a normal height. Trying to do this with wet leaves will just clog the mower.
Pro Tips:
- Start by unhooking the grass catcher, inserting the mulch plug into your mower, and closing the side discharge port. Once you’ve done this, mow your lawn as you would normally. Once you’ve gone over the lawn once, start a second pass at a right angle to the first.
Mow your lawn in stripes so you can go over the discharged leaf clippings from your previous passes, further reducing them in size and making them more effective mulch. Mowing your lawn in concentric circles is another effective way to cut and re-cut the leaf debris. This will let you mulch your clippings back into the grass with ease.
Ideally, you should cut your leaf debris into dime-size pieces for it to be effective mulch. When you can see about half an inch of grass above the mulched layer of leaves, you’re finished.
Shredded leaves will begin to settle into the soil, and microorganisms will start the decomposition process. This composts the leaf clippings into exceptional food for your lawn, making fallen leaves a valuable (yet often overlooked) resource for your yard.
Pros of mulching lawn mowers:
- Saves time
- Saves effort
- Good for the lawn
Cons of mulching lawn mowers:
- Can spread contaminants like pesticides and chemical treatments
- Can spread pests
- Requires the grass to be cut more often
5. Hire a leaf removal crew
If you don’t already have a leaf blower or mulching lawn mower, let the pros with the gear handle your leaf removal. Lawn Love makes it easy to “leaf” your worries behind.
Contact local leaf removal pros and get a quote with just a call or click. The pros have the tools to blow, rake, and mulch your yard’s leaves.
Time to decide: How will you remove those leaves?
DIY leaf removal takes time whether you’re raking, blowing or vacuuming leaves, or pushing or riding a mulching lawn mower. Hiring a leaf removal crew takes this chore off your hands so you can do other things on your weekend.
It’s all up to you. Time or money?
And maybe satisfaction plays into your decision, too. Like mowing the grass, raking leaves can leave you feeling like you accomplished something when your yard looks great. Raking leaves often is a lot of work though.
Main Image Credit: Pixabay
