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Why We Rake

Raking up leaves during autumn

It is the destiny of every child who grows up in their parents’ house: one day they will be handed the job to rake the leaves out in the yard each autumn. It is tiresome work but every dad will have prepared a convincing argument why it is essential to the lawn care of their Utah home. 

As specialists who curate a number of lawn care programs that are essential to the long-term health of your foliage, we endorse dad’s position.

The Essential Gardening Tool

At Lawngevity, as for all gardeners who attend to their yard, the rake is one of our most crucial tools. Not only does it have the ability to keep the lawn looking good but it has a very important purpose when it comes to maintaining your topsoil as well. Let’s take a look at why every homeowner should have a rake at their disposal.

Leaves, Leaves, Leaves

There are numerous reasons why we complained as kids about having to rake the leaves, not the least of which was that the leaves were beautiful to look at. Surely, something so nice — the symbol of Fall — isn’t hurting anything by staying where it landed? In truth, keeping the leaves on the ground can cause much more harm than you might expect.

  1. Utilizing Nature’s Resources

As we learned in elementary school when we were given our little plastic cup full of dirt, every flower needs two things in order to grow beautifully: water and sunlight. A layer of leaves will naturally block the ground from the essential heat and nutrients that the sun provides.

Water, too, will stay trapped in the top layer of leaves and be unable to fully saturate the ground to get at your plants’ roots. It would be a shame to cut off your ground from the bounties of Utah’s abundant lawn care resources like its bright desert sun and measured rainfall.

  1. Giving Space to Breathe

Have you ever placed something over your lawn for an extended period of time before moving it? Perhaps you parked a car on your grass or laid out some items for a yard sale. If you did this on a hot day, chances are that you saw some burn-in on the lawn or discoloration from the dormant grass

A thick layer of leaves doesn’t just deny the grass underneath from getting at the sun, it also suffocates and burns the lawn if the object doesn’t move. Your grass will lose its healthy glow and will look yellow with death. And if the leaves become saturated in the rain? The topsoil may become overly wet and your yard will drown.

  1. Preventing Disease

Leaves are not just the remnants of a healthy tree that has prepared itself for winter — they are also a favorite of animals, insects, and parasites that love to feed on, and make a home in, the leaves. If these unhealthy elements infect the leaf covering over your ground, then you will be locked into more robust lawn care programs in the future to clear them up.

Common grass diseases that Lawngevity treats include:  

  • Mildew
  • Rust
  • Necrotic spotting
  • Fairy rings
  • Leaf spots

Remember, rakes aren’t just good for getting rid of leaves; they are the perfect tool to till your soil. By turning over your nutrient-rich ground every now and then you allow essential elements like carbon to burrow down deep into the earth and make your garden a more productive part of your yard.

As we get older and learn more about the science of great lawn care here in Utah, we will begin to appreciate the rake’s utility all the more. If you have any questions about the state of your grass this summer or want to know more about our special lawn care programs, give Lawngevity a call. We are here to help.

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