The deteriorating health of lawn with raking leaves

The raking season is the hardest for homeowners because the leaves are everywhere except the trees. But are there any benefits of raking for your lawn? You should remove all the rusty leaves or keep them on the ground as they are?

Fallen leaves on your grass- What difference do they make?

One unique charm of the autumn season is rusty leaves and the crisp voice we hear after stepping on them. However, they might induce long-term damages to your grass if they keep piling on it.

A thick pile of fallen rusty leaves might block the sunlight from reaching your lawn’s grass. Therefore, it won’t be able to absorb the right amount of sunlight.

Moreover, your children and pet might get fungal diseases from the rotted roots of the grass as the raked leaves lock in moisture.

Also, fallen leaves are a great danger, especially if you live in hot and warm climates. The fallen leaves catch fire easily and that would be a problem bigger than the patchy grass of rotted roots in the lawn.

Due to all the natural disasters we’ve been through in 2020 and 2021, home insurance has increased significantly. Removing potential hazards from your property can potentially help you save on home insurance.

A viable solution to raking your lawn

Raking leaves turn into a pile and blocks sunlight which consequently, damages your lawn in the long run. Hence, it is best to remove all the fallen leaves from your grass. Leaving a thin layer of raking leaves is still not recommended by grass experts because they lock in moisture and might cause fungus in the grass.

Here are some of the alternatives to raking leaves

Composting

One of the best alternatives to raking is composting. The compost leaves provide nutrients and don’t pose a threat of catching fire.

You have to put the leaves in the compost drum and let them go through the process before you can spread them to your lawn. Grass experts recommend using compost leaves instead of fallen leaves to prevent sun blockage.

While the compost leaves go through the entire process, you can add nutrient-rich soil to the drum and let it there for several weeks. The compost leaves break down with the nutrient-rich soil and from good food for the grass. They turn to a healthy yet nutrient-rich composite material that could be given easily to the grass.

Once your leaves have composited and absorbed all the nutrients, you can spread the material evenly across the lawn.

The composite material is jam-packed with phosphorous and nitrogen; a budget-friendly yet effective formula to improve your grass’s health.

Mulching of leaves

Mulching mowers tear fallen leaves into small pieces. Leaf mulching involves the organic or direct composition of fallen leaves under the right conditions (on the grass). These leaves create a nutrient-rich material which absorbed into the grass automatically.

However, you have to do leaf mulching with few leaves and before the autumn season. Yes, the nutrient-rich composite material is good for your grass but over-mulching can create dead patches across your lawn.

 A 3-centimeter layer of fallen leaves is appropriate to launch the mulching process.

Conclusion

There are alternative methods to raking which are effective and budget-friendly. However, one should never opt for leaf raking as it causes permanent damage to the grass and might ruin the appearance of your lawn. As a side note, when you finish taking care of the fallen leaves, go speak to a home insurance broker and see if they can help lower your insurance costs!

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