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GLT's Grow: To Rake Or Not To Rake

Don LaVange
/
Flickr via Creative Commons
To rake or not to rake ... that is the question! Frankly, I think Hamlet would mulch.

As your trees leave you the gift of autumn leaves, you're faced with that age old question: Should I rake or not?

  • Patrick Murphy, host of GLT's Grow, is a huge fan of raking selectively. That is, rake the leaves together, then go over them with a mower and mulch them up.
  • You can mulch them fine and leave them on the lawn. Or you can collect them in the bag attachment and spread them over your garden beds.
  • Seeing a leaf-free lawn can warm the heart of any lawn lover. You can rake away, or better still, hire someone to do it for you. Just make sure that the piles of leaves you collect don't get into the street and potentially clock storm drains.
  • Unless you have a ton of leaves covering your grass, don't worry too much about leaving them. The myth that they will suffocate the grass is just that. If you have heaps of leaves that are shin deep, then by all means clear that away. A leaf blower saves your back, but mind where those leaves end up. Again, it's best to mulch them up and reuse them to feed your yard rather than molder away in a landfill.

GLT's Grow is your source for sage gardening advice and down-to-earth tips. Host Patrick Murphy and co-host Laura Kennedy are ready to take on all your gardening questions, so submit yours today.

WGLT depends on financial support from users to bring you stories and interviews like this one. As someone who values experienced, knowledgeable, and award-winning journalists covering meaningful stories in central Illinois, please consider making a contribution.

Reporter, content producer and former All Things Considered host, Laura Kennedy is a native of the Midwest who occasionally affects an English accent just for the heck of it. Related to two U.S. presidents, Kennedy appalled her family by going into show business.