Don't rake your leaves this fall! Here's why

Oct 15, 2024

To rake or not to rake?

It's officially autumn in Greater Cincinnati, which means beautiful fall foliage. Watching the leaves turn colors is one of the highlights of the season. Until those leaves hit the ground and become a nuisance to lawn owners across the region.

Your instinct may be to get a rake and bag them up, but you may want to think twice.

Joe Boggs, an entomologist and assistant professor with Ohio State University's Extension, has previously said keeping leaves on the ground is not an issue in most cases. Not raking leaves may benefit your overall yard health and the planet.

USA TODAY reports that leaving at least some of the leaves in your yard can help fertilize your grass and other plants, provide shelter for animals and even reduce emissions from landfills.

Here's what you need to know about managing the pesky leaves on your lawn this fall.

According to USA TODAY, there are several ecological benefits to letting your lawn go "au natural."

David Mizejewski, a naturalist at the National Wildlife Federation, told the publication in 2022 that fallen leaves can serve as a natural fertilizer for plants. He also said the layer of leaves is an important wildlife habitat that can form an entire ecosystem.

“There are probably thousands of different species that actually live in that leaf layer,” Mizejewski said. "Most of them are invertebrates, so think of everything from earthworms and little pillbugs and all sorts of little critters that live in that leaf layer. But also higher up the food chain, salamanders, toads, box turtles, shrews and chipmunks.”

Many of the insects found in leaf piles are seeking shelter in preparation for the winter, and the dark, damp piles provide food-rich spots that are perfect for various species. Some of the most common insects found in leaf piles include ants, beetles, centipedes, millipedes, pillbugs, earwigs, spiders and ticks, per USA TODAY. Caterpillars also find a home in leaf layers, which provide food for birds.

Boggs said he recommends around four fertilizations of grass per year: two in the spring and two in the fall. If you return grass and leaf clippings to the ground, you can cut the two spring fertilizer applications in half and use half as much nitrogen fertilizer.

"The horticulture benefits are a plus, and they far outweigh any negative thing I can think of," Boggs told The Enquirer in 2021.

If you choose not to rake this year, breaking up leaves with a mulching mower instead of bagging will allow ground-up leaves to return to the top of the earth.

If you are worried about trees dropping too many leaves and possibly choking the grass underneath, Boggs said that's nearly impossible. The overall benefits of not raking and bagging leaves outweigh the risks.

Maxim Schlossberg, an associate professor of turfgrass nutrition and soil fertility at Penn State, told USA TODAY that individuals should also avoid blowing leaves from their yards into the street because it can disrupt drains and local waters.

He said the foreign debris could clog grates and prevent water from properly draining.

Leaves can also end up in streams and rivers where drains lead. That can affect the water quality and “sensitive species adapted to those waterways,” Schlossberg said.

If the leaves on your lawn form a mat over your grass, experts agree you can move them as the weather cools across the country. The piles may become a prime growing spot for mold and fungi.

According to Big Lakes Lawncare, wet piles of leaves in colder environments can attract Microdochium nivale and Typhula incarnate, two types of fungi that cause snow mold. Snow mold is a fungal lawn disease that damages and kills grass. It often creates pink or grey circles or patches, and can cause allergies and asthma.

Schlossberg urges people to rake or break up leaves with a lawnmower if they expect snow soon. Mizejewski recommends placing leaves in garden beds or raking them into a bigger pile and letting them naturally decompose.

But whatever you plan to do with the leaves on your lawn, experts say to consider the plants and animals in your yard and the environment at large.

A version of this story was published in 2022 and 2023.