We need to heal the wounds that divide our nation. I’m not talking about the upcoming midterm election, I’m talking about what we do with the heaps of leaves that fall on our lawns each autumn.
Like politics, we’re divided into two parties that don’t seem to understand each other: the “BAGGERS” and the “MULCHERS”.
The Baggers are lawn traditionalists. They believe that it’s critical to get the leaves off the grass before the snow falls, or the lawn will be choked with rotting leaves. They fear that will prevent the roots from getting vital air & water in the spring. Followers of the Bagger party are willing to put in extra effort necessary to raking up bags & bags of leaves and get them to the county composting site.
Mulchers are the newer party. Mulching mowers became commonplace in the 1990s and encouraged people to just mow’em over and let the little clippings fall where they may. They understand that their lawn may not be as neat and tidy as the Baggers, but tout the environmental benefits of Mulching as the clippings help restore vital nutrients to the soil. It’s natural, they claim.
I’m a Mulcher, but I live in a neighborhood where most people are Baggers. I know the Baggers are looking down on me, but I believe that mulching is easier & better for the lawn. I’m a longtime follower of Jerry Baker – “The Lawn Doctor” – who insists that mulching will save your back from having to rake and let you spend your fall afternoons watching football.
Just like in politics, the “Experts” and “Mainstream Media” have a partisan bias. They are pushing mulching – which should maybe make us suspicious. Looking online, I see Popular Mechanics and Family Handyman recommending mulching mowers over rakes. The big lawn care companies, Scott’s, TruGreen, and Pennington, also promote the Mulching party. The horticulturists at our University of Minnesota are pushing homeowners to mulch, as well.
Since it is arguably easier, I could definitely see the Mulching party putting the Bagger party out of the debate before much longer. Perhaps, in time, they will go the way of the now defunct LEAF BURNING party. 🙂
Which leaf party do you belong to and why?
Image Credit: (c) MrFireStation.com
MrFireStation 
I belong to the P.O.T.T.E.R. Party (Pay Others To Totally Eliminate Refuse). In pre-retirement, this was an easy decision for me. Demand for and value of my time for work far exceeded cost of hiring yard workers. In retirement, I decided my free time would be spent on activities I enjoy rather than chores I don’t. The guys are outside right now with blowers, rakes, mulchers and trucks. I love watching them work, as I recall doing those things for money as a teen.
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Nice to sit back and enjoy the show! I have a friend who looked into hiring a crew, but they were incredibly expensive. What are you paying for today … mulching or bagging? I think you still have to pick a party … unless someone else (HOA?) is deciding.
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HOA decides. I’m on the board. Whether in a Cooperative community (as we are now) or a sole owner (which we were), my calculus is the same: What is my time worth to me? Dollars and cents factor in, but only on cost side. Benefits outweigh expenditures for me, as long as long-term financial plans remain within capital guard rails I’ve established. Time to goof off now!
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Goofing off … the best job I never had!
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As for the party, I don’t quiz the guys on where they dispose of leaves and mulch as long as it’s off my lawn!
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Definitely part of the Bagger Party.
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We are experiencing some new crazy legislation in the People’s Republican of California. They recently passed legislation where they want us to throw wet food waste garbage in the Green Waste bins along with food dirtied paper. The new law wants to reduce methane associated with rotting garbage that is buried. The green bin waste used to shredded and used as mulch around city owned land. I cannot wait to see how the turkey carcass mulch works out. Bet there is a massive uptick in flies.
WM also really cranked up the rates on green bins. There will more brush mulching on site.
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That sounds gross. I bet those bins get nasty and need to be pressure washed out constantly!
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I have a 250 foot long driveway and keep mine 200 feet away from my house. Yuck!
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LOL 🤮
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I mulch when the leaves first start to fall, but once they really cover everything and start to pile up, I switch to bagging.
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Funny you should say that. I got home from a trip last night and there is a HUGE pile of leaves in my front yard. Much too deep to mow over!
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Excellent post..! Neither, we’re a ‘let them go back to nature’ outfit.”. We are lucky enough to have just enough woods that lines our property so they end up there. No bagging or mulching, just rake or blow them with the mower into the woods. Makes it easy and no lugging around 50+ bags to the town recycle center.
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The Nature Party! We live on a big woods too, but even blowing them back there seems like more than just mowing them over, to me. Maybe I need a more powerful leaf blower – my electric one isn’t too strong.
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