Gathering fall leaves

[applestar]

First tree to shed its leaves in my yard is the curbside green ash next to the driveway. DH mowed the grass yesterday before I could rake up the leaves and there's rain in the forecast, so I was determined to save what I could from the driveway and the street this morning.

Here's what I gathered up:
[img]https://i290.photobucket.com/albums/ll272/applesbucket/BF24C734-D6FA-498C-9D91-3B669389D430-4847-0000020DB45C4DB7.jpg[/img]
I buried the fish guts from DH's weekend sea bass fishing under all those leaves

Next up should be the neighbor's sycamore across the street.

I found this funky fungus in the grass when I was raking up some of the excess grass clippings the mulching mower left behind. I tossed it in the compost pile along with the leaves.
[img]https://i290.photobucket.com/albums/ll272/applesbucket/DDC61513-C724-41B6-B39F-719863B75783-4847-0000020DC14E9C32.jpg[/img]

[applestar]

Had to ID the funky fungus of course -- it appears to be "Nest-shaped" or "Purple-spored" Puffball (Calvatia cyathiformis)
https://botit.botany.wisc.edu/toms_fungi/calvatia2.html

This one is old and had released its spores already, plus it was at the edge of what I consider "safe zone" ...meaning it was only about 10 feet inside our never-chemically-treated property line. But last year or maybe two years ago, I found one in better shape well inside the safe zone, which had a completely white and bread dough-like interior when cut open, and learning that it was considered unlikely to be mistaken for any poisonous mushroom and considered good to eat, I ate it.

[ReptileAddiction]

What does DH mean?

[cynthia_h]

Well...the standard meaning is "Dear" Husband. But, given that the man ran over the leaves and made a mess out of them before she could rake them up, there may be a different word in place of "Dear" today. Polite versions of this word include "Darned," "Dratted," and the like.

Cynthia H.
Sunset Zone 17, USDA Zone 9

[Meatburner]

lol Cynthia. If that's the worst thing he has done lately, then life will be good. I am sure he meant well trying to help you.

[DoubleDogFarm]

Just think if his mower had a bagger on it. He would be getting extra pie instead of in the eye.

Buy him a bagger attachment for Christmas.

Eric

[rainbowgardener]

Love the purple fungus!

[cynthia_h]

lol Cynthia. If that's the worst thing he has done lately, then life will be good. I am sure he meant well trying to help you.

He's applestar's guy, not mine. There's nothing to mow here.

But you know how it is:

He: Where is my underwear?
She: That stuff with all the holes? I threw it out!
He: But it was my lucky underwear for the playoffs! [exits, fuming]

She: Just wanna let you know, I'm going to rake up the leaves this morning so I can have them for the compost bin.
He: [incomprehensible noise]
She: OK?
[later...see first post in this thread]
He: [well, applestar, what did he say?]

Cynthia, not sure what other long-term couples get on each others' nerves about....

[applestar]

Cynthia has nailed the problem right there -- lack of communication.

He slipped out of the house and mowed the lawn at the break of dawn, because he wanted to go on a 12hr seabass boat.

As for the bagger attachment, I was the one that told him about the "new" mulching mower design when they first started coming out. In fact, he bought a replacement aftermarket mulching blade for the mower he owned at the time even before mulching mower models became part of the regular line-up. Ever since then, he hasn't looked back, but opted for better, more efficient designs and loves it.

I mostly prefer to get the "grass clipping" component of my compost pile and mulch from the back yard, quietly, with my push mower and scythe.

[rainbowgardener]

I have not yet seen any yard waste bags of leaves; they should be appearing soon. I love it... get other people to do all the raking and bagging for you for free.

[applestar]

That WOULD make things simpler. The yard waste bag requirement hasn't been adoptd around here. Our township and most others in this area use leaf vacuum trucks so all the leaves are piled up in the street....

I've gone around the neighborhood collecting in the open wheelbarrow in the past. This time, I used a used shower curtain "tarp" to collect the leaves. It's a lot easier to rake onto the flat surface, then pick up the four corners and go. They actualy sell canvas tarp with handles on corners that I thought was really clever.

[DoubleDogFarm]

I feel comfortable getting field mowing debris from the neighbors. Not sure if I would accept curbside pickup and street sweepings. I would have to know the home owner and neighborhood.

Eric

[rainbowgardener]

I wouldn't pick up grass clippings people put out on the street, because lawns are usually treated with chemicals. But nobody much sprays huge old oak/maple/hackberry/osage orange/catalpa trees which is what we have a lot of in my neighborhood. So I figure bags full of leaves are pretty safe.

[DoubleDogFarm]

I wouldn't pick up grass clippings people put out on the street, because lawns are usually treated with chemicals. But nobody much sprays huge old oak/maple/hackberry/osage orange/catalpa trees which is what we have a lot of in my neighborhood. So I figure bags full of leaves are pretty safe.

True, but!

Street sweepings are materials such as sand, salt, leaves, broken glass, small pieces of metal,
and other litter and debris removed from streets, parking lots and sidewalks in order to
prevent these materials from being washed into storm sewers and surface waters, and to
improve the appearance and safety of public roadways. Street sweepings are not as clean as
virgin earth materials and should be handled with a certain degree of care. Street sweepings
usually contain low levels of chemical compounds associated with stormwater runoff. Zinc and copper have surpassed lead as being the most common metal contained in road sediments.
Sodium and compounds associated with asphalt and motor oils can also be found. A vehicular accident or spill can result in high levels of these hazardous compounds.

https://www.ct.gov/dep/lib/dep/waste_management_and_disposal/solid_waste/street_sweepings.pdf

Just be careful with what you are collecting and applying.

Eric

[rainbowgardener]

Mine aren't really street sweepings, since we don't have the system Applestar mentioned. These are leaves people rake up from their lawns and put in to yard waste bags for pick up.

I would think if you did have a pile of leaves on the street, if you just took the top of the pile and left the bottom foot or so, you would minimize the amount of street junk you were picking up.

[edelweiss]

About 20 years ago, in the city they used to come weekly with a truck and vacuumed all the piled leaves up along the curb side. I know in parts of Toronto they still do. Later people were encouraged to rake them and put them in recyclable yard waste paper bags to be picked up by the city weekly. Now we are encouraged to compost, but are still given the option to do the above way. I remember filling over 30 bags with fall leaves, all from one huge, old Maple tree. But in summer we never had to use the AC, because of that beautiful tree!