At this time of year, many of us are looking to get rid of the last of the fallen leaves and to ensure our costly trees and shrubs survive the winter.  A series of articles written last year at this time will be very useful to you. Below are their titles, brief intro, and a link to the full story.  Enjoy.

Wrapping trees & shrubs for Winter.  You may recall seeing trees and shrubs wrapped up in burlap as you drive through a residential area. over the years, I’ve seen fewer of these and began to wonder why people do it and others don’t.  Read the full story.

To Rake or Not to Rake.  The leaves have fallen and this past weekend most of my neighbours were raking leaves and piling them into yard waste bags. This week’s garbage pickup will require a lot of heavy lifting by the waste management crew to get all those bags, that now so neatly line the curb, up and into their trucks. But they make great compost so why are you wasting time raking?  Read the full story.

More About Lawns and LeavesI had some people ask me to provide some follow-up information to the article on raking lawns.  This article addresses questions such: Can we to run the lawn mower over the leaves? Can I leave my leaves on my lawn?  Read the full story.

Leaf Blowers – good or bad?  This article reports the benefits and issues with leaf blowers.  I hope to arm you with information that helps you make a better decision for yourself and your neighbours. Indeed, the issues with Leaf Blowers can also be true of gas-powered lawn mowers; so good to know in case that is on your Christmas list this year.  Read the full story.

Submitted by Doreen Coyne, a member of Richmond Hill Garden & Horticultural Society