Irvington Wants Locals to Love 'Em and Leave 'Em

IRVINGTON, N.Y. – Autumn means that soon the leaves will begin to fall. Although many homeowners' first instinct is to blow or rake them into piles to be picked up, Irvington's Green Policy Task Force is encouraging residents to leave the leaves in place.

The “Love 'Em and Leave 'Em” campaign aims to change the way homeowners deal with fall leaves. Instead of carting away leaves, task force members say the best thing to do is to mulch the leaves right where they fall.

Mulching in place requires a lawn mower, mulching mower or some other tool that will shred the leaves into smaller pieces. The Green Policy Task Force outlines the procedure on its website.

Mulching in place also saves money for both the village and homeowner. The village doesn't have to pay to pick-up the leaves and cart them away, while homeowners get a natural fertilizer.

"The sooner we start having everyone’s leaves 'mulched-in-place' and/or composted on-site, the sooner we can start saving tax dollars and benefit our shared environment by eliminating the senseless trucking of valuable leaf resources into another county or community,” the task force wrote on Irvington's website. “It’s a win-win situation.”

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