As winter approaches, it's easy to overlook the importance of maintaining your lawn's health. However, one crucial task that should not be ignored is removing leaf piles before the snow arrives. Leaving piles of leaves on your lawn in Iowa during the winter can have detrimental effects on its overall health and appearance. When leaves are left on your lawn during the winter, they will smother your grass and block its access to vital nutrients and resources. They will also create a perfect environment that attracts and fosters insect infestations and diseases. To prevent all these, make sure you clean up and remove the leaf piles on your lawn!

Leaving leaf piles on your lawn during the winter can smother your grass.

Thick pile of leaves covering a lawn in Ankeny, IA.

When leaves accumulate on your lawn and are left there during the winter, they can smother your grass. The pile of leaves creates a denser cover that blocks out sunlight, which your grass needs to perform photosynthesis. Without sunlight, your grass can turn yellow and grow weak.

Additionally, the leaves can also block water, air, and other essential nutrients from reaching your grass. This can lead to your grass not receiving the nutrients it needs to stay healthy and strong, which can cause it to grow slowly and become discolored. Come springtime when your lawn is ready to come out of dormancy, it won't have proper access to the resources it needs to emerge and start growing again.

Leaf piles provide shelter for pests during the winter.

During the winter, pests are looking for a place to shelter from the cold weather. Leaf piles provide the perfect environment for pests to hide and breed, leading to an infestation on your property. Some common pests that can be found in leaf piles include ticks, fleas, and rodents. If these pests make their way onto your property, they can cause damage to your lawn and pose a threat to your safety. By removing leaf piles from your property before winter arrives, you can help reduce the risk of a pest infestation.

Leaf piles create the perfect environment for lawn diseases.

Leaf piles can create the perfect environment for lawn diseases to develop and spread. When leaves are left on your lawn during the winter, they can trap moisture and create a damp environment that is ideal for fungi and other pathogens to thrive. This can lead to the development of various lawn diseases, such as snow mold, which can cause significant damage to your lawn. By removing leaf piles from your property before winter arrives, you can help reduce the risk of lawn diseases and keep your grass healthy.

Leaf piles can lead to the development of snow mold on your lawn!

Give us a call today to schedule our fall cleanup service!

Letting leaves sit on your lawn during winter spells trouble for the growth of your grass. Fortunately, you can prevent all the issues caused by leaf piles with our leaf removal service at ETCH Outdoor Living! We offer a comprehensive fall cleanup service that includes leaf removal to help keep your lawn in top shape during the winter season. When you sign up for this service, we'll not only remove leaves from your lawn but other debris as well to keep your turf healthy and looking manicured! You can schedule this service as early as mid-October, so you can rest assured your lawn is well-prepared for the winter.

We offer our fall cleanup service to residential and commercial property owners, as well as HOAs, in Ankeny, Johnston, Urbandale, West Des Moines, Waukee, IA, and throughout the surrounding areas. Give us a call today at (515) 654-5447 to schedule our fall cleanup service!