Raking leaves again this fall? Stop right now

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2019/10/05/raking-leaves-fall-stop-now-keep-leaves-lawn-mulch-them/3853468002/?fbclid=IwAR2hBRa_yS4Z4zhYrVe95cu9NXgexqHtEdKawcuQMbPiIeUMTZEXC6HLEvE

Ryan W. Miller, USA TODAY Published 7:00 a.m. ET Oct. 5, 2019 | Updated 10:17 a.m. ET Oct. 5, 2019

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Environmental experts say raking leaves and removing them from your property is bad not only for your lawn but for the planet as a whole.

Although people often rake fallen leaves and send them to a landfill to prevent their lawns from being smothered and to make yards look better, in most cases, you're fine not moving them.

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Leaves and yard waste take up space in landfills

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Leaves take up space and they also can break down with other organic waste to create methane, a potent greenhouse gas which contributes to climate change, he added.

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"Leaves cover up root systems, preserve soil moisture, suppress weeds and other plants. They also slowly break down and ... return (essential) nutrients to plants," Mizejewski said. "It's a perfect system. Nothing is wasted in nature."

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Butterflies and songbirds alike depend on leaf litter, according to Mizejewski.

"Over winter months, a lot of butterflies and moths as pupa or caterpillar are in the leaf litter, and when you rake it up you are removing the whole population of butterflies you would otherwise see in your yard," he said.

Without the insects in the leaf litter, you also risk driving away birds that might have come to your yard looking for food to feed their offspring in the spring.

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Sorochan, at University of Tennessee, said that keeping leaves on your lawn also has the added benefit of reducing fertilizer runoff.

Algal blooms can kill wildlife and harm human health, and they often form when excess fertilizer runs into waterways. Because leaving leaves on your lawn serves as a fertilizer, if no other fertilizers are added, it will reduce runoff, Sorochan said.

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If you do remove your leaves, the best thing to do is cut them up and drop them in a plant or flower bed or another part of your lawn that doesn't get leaf cover, Mizejewski said.

That will provide a natural fertilizer and mulch for those parts of your yard. If you're worried the leaves will blow away (though they should be fine), lightly water them, Mizejewski said.

If you don't have a plant or flower bed or have too many leaves, start a compost bin, he and Sandor advise.

Some municipalities also have compost programs, which allow you to send your leaves off and get mulch back, Mizejewski said, but composting at your house is better so you don't have the added pollution of trucks and off-site machines taking and processing the leaves.

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