METRO DETROIT – We live in Michigan and our beautiful canopy of fall colors have turned into a carpet of nuisance in our yards.
Warren police say they get reports of neighbors squabbling with other neighbors about a lack of leaf etiquette. But a rule of thumb for leaf removal, according to Tim Travis of Goldner Walsh Garden and Home in Pontiac, is no matter who owns the tree, the leaves belong to the yard in which they fall. He says, much like rain and snow, Mother Nature dictates the direction in which leaves fall and in order to keep the peace in communities, everyone needs to do their part to help one another.
However, if you're all about you, keep in mind what's in your yard is yours to move.
Some communities, such as Royal Oak, have a leaf vacuum program. On Monday, they spent the morning getting the cobwebs out of their units. Check the Royal Oak City website (click to view) to find out what day the Vactor truck will be coming through your street -- starting next week.
Each street will get at least two leaf pick-ups this year, maybe three if needed. Simply rake the leaves into the street for the city to remove. Good leaf etiquette is finding out your particular day and raking leaves one or two days prior to pickup to keep from blocking limited parking spaces and to keep the wind from blowing the leaves around.
Cities such as Sterling Heights do not have a leaf vacuum program, but leaf pickup is critical. Sterling Heights has a watershed and unattended leaves can clog drains and cause future flooding.
For those who can't get the leaves up themselves like the elderly and the disabled, this Saturday there's a community wide volunteer program to get leaves up and out of the way.
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4 basic rules for Leaf Etiquette:
* Pay attention to weather reports and get leaves managed before rain or wind events.
* Get leaves out of your yard before they blow into your neighbor's yard.
* Don't put leaves in the street if they will block parking spaces and hinder trash pick-up.
* If you don't like to rake, mow. Leaf mulching into the lawn is free fertilizer.