Loving Your House #5: Late Autumn/Early Winter Tips for Homeowners

Love Notes from the Director of Design & Construction, H. Dynia

AUTUMN - HOW TO MAKE LEAVES MAGICALLY DISAPPEAR

Why rake and remove leaves?  People don’t like the “messy” look of leaf litter blowing around, which can be slippery when wet, and grass covered with leaves through the winter will negatively affect the health of the lawn.  Leaves are a valuable soil amendment that should not be sent “away”.  Learn to process them into a soil amendment that can make your soil more fertile and biologically healthier.  Placing ground up leaves on your shrub or flower beds will help woody plant materials to endure a tough winter by keeping the root zone warmer and moister.  However, it is better to place the leaf mulch on the plant beds later in the Fall, like now, rather than earlier in the Fall, because the favorable conditions you are creating may cause the buds the plant has set for next spring to open now.  This practice will give the earth worms a head start on converting the leaf mulch into elements the plants can use.  Another advantage is that you are getting your final cut done on your grass, which adds the nitrogen-containing clippings to your leaf mulch.  You will be surprised at how you can reduce a 2 foot high pile of leaves into a 2 – 4 inch layer of leaf mulch instantly.  There are easy ways to do this that save you time and energy.  Instead of collecting, bagging, and “getting rid of” the leaves, consider these strategies:

1.      In General, work from high to low, clean the house gutters first, so you can just throw it
down where you will be raking anyway.  Although sailors hate wind-less conditions, it is easy to deal with leaves when conditions are still.

   

2.      To most easily process your leaves, a mulching mower is best.  A walk-behind power mower of at least 5 HP (very common) that does not discharge leaves to the side enables you to chop up leaves without blowing them all over the lawn.  However, if all you have is a side discharge mower, you can make that work if you plan where you want the leaves to end up.  Set the cutting height lower rather than higher, since the grass may continue to grow some until the real cold sets in. 

 

3.      This process works best if you can work with the weather.  Dry leaves chop up much easier than wet leaves, and are easier to move around. If you know there is a rain storm coming, don’t rake them into piles, they will stay wet for a long time.  Instead, leave them where they fall and let them dry out for a day or two.

4.      You can rake them into a pile, using a wide bamboo rake, and then mow the pile, slicing off a narrow strip on each pass.  After going through the whole pile this way, you can then “cross cut” the pile, in the other direction, to further reduce the bulk. If you are starting with dry, crispy leaves, you will end up with something close to “leaf powder”.  Generally, you will do this on the lawn area somewhere close to the ultimate destination, but it is best to do on a pavement, like a driveway, because then you don’t have to rake out the fine “choppings” from the grass where you processed them.

5.      After the chopping process is done to your satisfaction, rake up you product and place it on shrub, flower, or vegetable garden areas.  A layer 2 -3 inches is plenty.  By the spring, it will be 1 inch or less.  Leave as little of the ground up leaves in the grass as possible because too much of a good thing will affect the soil PH unfavorably for grass growth.  In the spring, you can cultivate the leaf mulch right into the soil or just leave it in place, or cover it with decorative bark mulch.

6.      If there are already fallen leaves on your shrub beds and garden areas, you don’t need to remove them, just place your leaf mulch over them, and the earthworms will take care of the rest.

7.       Following this system will allow you to create the maximum favorable conditions for your plants and soil during the winter, because nature will be working for you (earthworms, moisture, warmth) rather than against you (dry, sterile soil, desiccated plants, frozen root zones).  Then you can apply decorative mulch in the spring, and your landscape will look fresh, and the soil with be healthier.

8.      Care of the mower is important when used in this manner.  The most vulnerable component is the air filter.  This will clog up after a few hours in a dusty leaf pile.  Often it can just be removed and knocked around to get the dirt out enough to keep the engine up to power.  Symptoms of a clogging air filter is a noticeable decline in engine power to the point of it not being able to do anything.  Also, when refueling, do not allow crumbs of leaves to get into the fuel tank.  Carefully brush the dirt away around the fuel tank filler cap before refueling. 

If this article is catching you too late to be of benefit, save it for next year, it will give you time to plan out a strategy and get the equipment you need.  A decent mulching mower as described should cost under $200, and you still may be able to get one on clearance hidden somewhere away for the season.  Your neighbors can benefit from this process, so if they see you at work, take the time to explain what you are doing, and the benefits thereof.  Whole towns and cities can benefit if residents take care of their leaves on site, rather than exporting them”away”.      

WINTER ICE AND SNOW - ROOF

If you have had ice dam damage from ice on your roof in the past, now is the time to think about how to avoid this kind of problem for next winter, because we do not know how challenging or benign the next winter will be.  Here are 3 possible strategies to deal with ice dams:

      1.  If your roof is worn and ready for re-roofing, current building codes require membranes along the lower edges of the roof that greatly reduce leaks from ice dams.

2.  Place heat-producing cables along roof edges and gutters to melt away ice as it forms.  These products are readily available at home centers and hardware stores, but can be challenging to install if you are not comfortable with heights and ladders.  Follow the products instructions for installation and use. They will cost you some electricity to operate. 

3.  Acquire a roof rake and pull off as much snow from the roof as you can, if you can reach it with the extended handle of the roof rake.  Especially concentrate on the eve (lower) areas.  If the sun can reach the roof material, it often can warm it enough to defeat ice build-up.

     

WINTER ICE AND SNOW - PAVEMENTS 

Another casualty of the past winter has been hardscape areas, which may have been damaged by snow plows, snow shovels, ice choppers, and ice melting chemicals.  When using de-icing chemicals on concrete, or concrete pavers, only use products that are labeled as “pavement friendly”.  Sodium Chloride (rock salt) destroys concrete.  Calcium Chloride is less destructive.  Surface damage to limited areas such as steps, porches, etc. can be repaired with high-strength concrete repair and re-surfacing materials, a task within grasp of most homeowners.

Any questions?! Feel free to email us at Admin@NHSofNewHaven.org!