BrainStuff Classics: Why Should You Stop Raking Fall Leaves?

Something has to be done with all those fall leaves, but the best option for the environment (and your lawn) isn't raking, it's mulching. Learn why, and how to get started, in this classic episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://home.howstuffworks.com/stop-raking-leaves.htm

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to brain Stuff, a production of iHeart Radio, Hey
brain Stuff. I'm Laurenvoglebomb, and today we've got a classic
episode for you. In this one, we get into the
environmental science around raking leaves off of lawns. It's actually
doing both your grass and your community a disservice. Welcome

(00:23):
to brain Stuff, a production of iHeart Radio, Hey brain Stuff,
Lauren Voglebomb. Here to a lot of folks, some of
the best fall memories include raking and jumping in huge
piles of leaves before squeezing them into bags and placing
them by the curb to be hauled off to the landfill.
Some folks are old enough to remember when burning leaves
with standard practice. These days, however, neither is looked upon

(00:46):
with approving eyes. Breaking bagging, and hauling leaves away might
make your yard look like a showplace, but it's no
longer considered environmentally friendly. Why Well, like we said, those
lawn refuse bags go to the landfill, and according to
the US Environmental Protection Agency, in twenty fifteen, yard trimmings
accounted for thirty four point seven million tons of municipal

(01:09):
solid waste. The majority of that twenty one point three
million tons was recovered and composted or mulched in state programs,
but ten point eight million tons still went to the landfill.
That's more than eight percent of total waste generated in
twenty fifteen. However, if you have a lawn that you
want to maintain, getting rid of the fallen leaves is

(01:30):
essential because not only will wet leaves smothering kill the grass,
they can also prevent new growth from taking hold come springtime.
So what are you to do rather than raking and bagging.
The University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension Service suggests mowing
the leaves with a multure instead. A multure is a
machine similar to a lawnmower in that it cuts grass

(01:51):
as you pushed along, except it has specialized blades that
keep chopping the clippings into very fine pieces. By mulching
dry lea, which essentially shreds them into dime sized pieces,
you've created free food for your yard. The tiny pieces
of shredded leaves will filter down between the blades of
grass and add vital nutrients like nitrogen back to the soil.

(02:12):
The ideal time to melt the leaves is when you
can see the blades of grass start poking through the
blanket of leaves. That may mean weakly mulchings depending on these,
size of your yard and the number of trees. You
don't want to completely cover your lawn with a thick
layer of mulch, though, so if the leaves get too heavy,
rake the extra ones in a pile and then spread
them around your trees or shrubs. In addition to adding

(02:34):
back nutrients, molting your garden has other benefits. It helps
keep weeds at bay, holds moisture in the soil, and
helps moderate soil temperatures. Your lawn, trees, shrubs, and the
environment will thank you for mulching instead of raking the leaves.
Some cities and municipalities have stopped picking up bagged yard
clipigs altogether, including leaves, because of the cost and environmental concerns.

(02:56):
Rather than continuing to raise taxes for garbage pickup, they've
offer mulching workshops and called on homeowners to invest money
into mulchers or mulching blades for lawnmowers so that they
can beautify their yards with homegrown mulch like yard confetti.
Today's episode is based on the article why you should

(03:18):
stop breaking fall Leave's stat on HowStuffWorks dot com written
by Patty Resmusen. Brain Stuff is production of iHeartRadio in
partnership with how Stuffworks dot Com, and it's produced by
Tyler Klang. Four more podcasts my heart Radio, visit the
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favorite shows.