Instead of raking up and bagging those leaves in plastic bags and taking them to the side of the road to be picked up why not put them to good use in your gardens for next spring.
https://www.organicgardening.com/feature/0,7518,s1-3-79-1273,00.html?trafficsource=OGNews_2007_11_06
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pixelphoto
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opabinia51
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You are absolutely correct, I have advocating people to do that for years. Leaves are loaded with both micro and macro nutrients that trees mine from deep within the earth.
You can mow the larger leaves such as: Maple, cottonwood and so on so they break doown quicker and don't mat together.
Place all leaves either in piles and turn once and a while to aid in their decomposition or lay them out over you beds in the fall as a mulch and leave or cover with a green like grass clippings, coffee grounds (available from local coffee shops.) or manure. (I actually do several layers of leaves starting with unmulched maples with one of the above greens, I finish off with a layer of manure).
Even your lawn beside the mulched beds will grow better and be that much greener.
Incidentally, your piles of leaf mold can be used as a mulch in the summer once all your seedlings have germinated.
You can mow the larger leaves such as: Maple, cottonwood and so on so they break doown quicker and don't mat together.
Place all leaves either in piles and turn once and a while to aid in their decomposition or lay them out over you beds in the fall as a mulch and leave or cover with a green like grass clippings, coffee grounds (available from local coffee shops.) or manure. (I actually do several layers of leaves starting with unmulched maples with one of the above greens, I finish off with a layer of manure).
Even your lawn beside the mulched beds will grow better and be that much greener.
Incidentally, your piles of leaf mold can be used as a mulch in the summer once all your seedlings have germinated.