Leaves

Blog Update: Starting tomorrow morning I will be updating this blog somewhat. You may see some weird things going on as I test things out. Most of the changes will involve the sidebar and header. I'm still debating other changes like the background. Please don't worry though as these changes will not affect the posts or archives. So please bare with me for the next couple of days. I promise things will be back to normal shortly.

Autumn Beauty
October 22, 2008

It's autumn! The peak tree colours are now waning and leaves are flitting everywhere. Don't leave those leaves laying on your lawn or gardens. Rake them and bag them then set aside where they can sit undisturbed over the winter. By spring you will be able to use them for preparing your garden beds. You can also do a final mowing with the bagger in place or a leave vacuum to mulch the leaves that will help them break down faster.

This is a good time for me to share my views on leaf blowers/vacuums. We have one that sits in the garage wasting space. Yes it is easy to use but it uses electricity. The strap stresses the shoulder joint making it not exactly the healthiest thing to use for anyone who has back problems. However, the biggest complaint I have about this garden tool is the horrid noise it makes. This time of the year in urban settings you can't go a day without hearing one of these things. In my opinion they are nothing more than another irritating form of noise pollution, something that does affect your health. Our lovely rural setting is blissfully free of the sounds of leaf blowers!

A good, old fashioned fan rake is used to gather leaves. This is a non-polluting way of getting healthy exercise while filling your lungs with fresh air. At the same time we end up with a good soil ammendment for the garden beds in the spring and through-out the growing season. If you have more leaves than you can use in your own gardens put the word out to other gardeners who will be glad to take them off your hands.

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
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