Howdy, folks!
It’s hard to believe summer has already come and gone, isn’t it? Why, it seems like just the other day I was putting seedlings into my springtime beds, and here we are watching the leaves fall and tumble across the lawn. Even though the growing season is just winding down, there’s already plenty to do to make sure my (and your) lawn is ready to grow again come spring. For starters, leaf-covered turf is bad news, so I spent Saturday raking leaves. You should’ve seen the mountain I had by the time I was finished—it would’ve filled at least two dozen yard waste bags! There’s no way I’d throw out that much valuable organic material, so I sent ‘em through my Jerry Baker Leaf Eater. In no time at all, that gigantic pile of leaves was shredded into a neat little bag of nutrient-rich mulch that was perfect for my flower beds.
You can bet a day of leaf-rakin’ can leave the old muscles pretty darn sore. So I grabbed a hand towel, and soaked it in warm water. Meanwhile, I mixed 1 tbsp. of petroleum jelly and 6 drops of peppermint oil in a bowl, and set it in a basin of warm water for about 3 minutes. Then I wrung out the towel, dipped it into the oil/jelly mixture, and had my wife massage it into my aching muscles. This terrific treatment left me feeling soothed, relaxed, and warm.
Speaking of feeling warm, did you know that by turning your thermostat down by just two degrees, you can save as much as 10% on your heating bills? It’s true! You’ll hardly even notice the difference in temperature, but your monthly budget sure will!
Raking for organic material? Isn’t that why we have baggers on our lawnmowers?
I catch a dry day in late November, make one run at the 4″ setting – discharging the chopped leaves onto a tarp; then double back at the 2.5″ setting.
Mixed together with some cheap top soil and lime and my garden beds are nice and comfy for the winter.