Although everyone enjoys watching the leaves change color during autumn, cleaning them up after they fall off the trees isn’t always so widely enjoyed. Here are a few tools to help make your yard clean-up a cinch this year.
If you’re tired of juggling your rake full of leaves while attempting to keep those pesky paper leaf bags open and upright, you should look into a Rollable Giant Leaf Collection Bag. The bag lays flat on the ground, but the rigid frame keeps the mouth wide open so you can easily sweep that pile of leaves right in without any struggling. It even has plastic wheels to make moving around the lawn a breeze. Visit www.cleanairgardening.com/yardcleanup.html for more information.
The collection bag might help you remove those leaves in a quick and easy fashion, but having a good rake to get the job done is just as important. A typical plastic rake can get clogged up with leaves and sticks and whatever else the trees might drop on your lawn, making clean-up a hassle, as you have to keep pausing to unclog the rake. A relatively new option available is the True Temper ClogFree plastic rake. A small change of design to the tines makes all the difference; the tines are actually connected at their ends across the entire width of the rake, so leaves and sticks can’t get stuck. According to
Popular Mechanics, the teeth are “great at collecting leaves, grass clippings, twigs, pine needles and acorns, without clogging up.” See the whole collection of ClogFree rakes and locate one near you at www.amestruetemper.com.
While you’re busy raking up leaves and sticks to prep your gardens for the winter season, you’ll need a sturdy pair of gloves to keep your hands clean and blister-free. Clean Air Gardening recommends the Bionic Gardening Gloves for their flexible, comfortable fit. In addition, the gloves are uniquely designed to offer better grip and reduce the occurrence of muscle fatigue and calluses. The Arthritis Foundation even awarded these gloves an “Ease of Use Commendation.” You can order them from the Clean Air Gardening site (www.cleanairgardening.com/gloves.html) or from www.target.com.
If you’re not a fan of raking at all, leave the rake in the garage and break out the Push Lawn Sweeper. Eliminating the need for gasoline, this sweeper is run solely by your own power. Push the sweeper around the yard and the built-in brushes will efficiently sweep leaves and other yard debris into the attached receptacle. Instead of twisting and turning while raking leaves into piles, you can comfortably walk behind the lawn sweeper; when the leave receptacle is full, you just have to lift it off for easy emptying. According to PeoplePoweredMachines.com, this cleans up leaves 10 times faster than raking. With two size options – the 26-inch sweeper and the deluxe 31-inch sweeper – you can get the optimal size for your yard. Visit www.peoplepoweredmachines.com/sweeper for information.
With these tools to help you simplify fall clean up, you’ll have more time to enjoy the exciting activities of the season.
