What to do with your leaves

Nov. 5—Although many area trees have already shed some or most of their leaves, the process of disposing of them continues throughout the Daily News readership area.

The following information details leaf collection plans for each of the major communities in our market.

BATESVILLE

The Batesville Street Department has begun the process of curbside collection of leaves and will conclude in December. On average, it takes between two to four weeks to make a complete circuit of the city.

Residents are advised to assist by following these simple guidelines to ensure a successful leaf collection program:

—Place leaves as close to the edge of the street as possible without placing leaves in the street.

—Be sure that leaves are free of any other debris and cars are not blocking the path of the leaf machine.

—All loose leaves are picked up on street side only.

—No loose leaves are collected in alleyways.

These services are only provided to residents within the city of Batesville.

Collection schedules will only be interrupted in the event of severe weather.

Visit Batesville's website (https://batesvilleindiana.us/departments/street-department/leaf-limb/) for more information on leaf and limb collection.

GREENSBURG

Loose material, such as leaves, must be bagged, preferably in clear bags or marked and placed away from your regular trash.

Place the bags at the curb in front of your home for collection the same day as your trash collection.

Brush must be stacked in front of your property with all cut ends facing the street. If you have contracted with someone to trim vegetation on your property, it is their responsibility to remove the resulting materials.

Visit https://www.cityofgreensburg.com/city-services/street-department/trash-and-brush-routes/ for more information about the Greensburg's policy regarding leaves and brush disposal.

RUSHVILLE

Leaf collection is underway. City residents are asked to place their leaves on the curb for collection.

Do not mix with limbs or other yard waste. Those items are collected separately.

Any leaves placed in alleys will be collected at the end of the season. This is to avoid multiple trips through alleys due to the difficulty of maneuvering the leaf vac through them.

Visit https://www.cityofrushville.in.gov/departments-services/city-departments/streets/ for more information about the Rushville's policy regarding trash, leaves and brush disposal.

OTHER OPTIONS

Rather than raking the leaves on your lawn, you might want to consider mulching them.

Take the grass catcher off your mower and mow over the leaves on your lawn.

Reduce your leaf clutter to dime-size pieces. You'll know you're done mowing leaves when about half an inch of grass can be seen through the mulched leaf layer.

Once the leaf bits settle in, microbes and worms get to work recycling them.

Any kind of rotary-action mower will do the job, and any kind of leaves can be chopped up.

According to https://www.scotts.com/en-us/library/lawn-care-basics/dont-rake-those-leaves-mulch-them-your-lawn, with several passes of your mower you can mulch up to 18 inches of leaf clutter.

If leaving the mowed leaves on your lawn doesn't appeal to you, consider composting them.

To do so, simply shred the leaves and mix them with grass clippings or another source with a high level of nitrogen.

Once you start mixing in your leaves make sure you start slowly and stir the pile on a regular basis.