Within the week, we put down our syringe hoses and picked up
rakes!
It is just the start of the leaf season which will not end
until next spring. We have many trees, and many varieties, so the leaf drop does
not occur at the same time! Although I will not account for every variety, leaf
drop starts with the maples and cherries, then the hickory, sassafras and
dogwood, and finally the oaks that extend their leaf drop well into the next
spring. Throughout this time, the evergreens drop last year’s needles, acorns
fall, twigs break, and so it goes. Managing leaves and tree debris becomes a full time, full crew,
job.
Each day we blow off the play areas and mulch the leaves as
best we can. In some areas, we also use the leaf vacuum, and in others we blow the leaves
into the woods. Then there are many places where we have no choice but to rake them
into piles, pick them up by hand, and take them to our refuse area.
An unseen challenge is the neighbors – leaves blow from their
properties onto ours and ours onto theirs. We continually try to do our best to cooperate with our neighbors to keep our
leaves under control so they aren’t their
problem.
On an average day, we spend over 35 person hours on leaves
alone. On most days we are able to keep up with the leaves. There are times, especially when it’s windy, when nothing seems to work no matter how much time we spend
managing the leaf fall. With the winds, it’s like herding cats as the herd is
multipling out of control.
Leaf season is one of the most labor intensive times of the
year, and it is sometimes the most frustrating!
