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4 Tips for Dealing with Leaves this Fall

Americans love fall. Fall decor hits the shelves before summer is even in full swing and the scent of pumpkin spice and cinnamon fills the air the second there’s a slight chill. The St. Louis area is home to some of the most beautiful fall foliage which makes fall even more enjoyable here in the Midwest.

Although they’re stunning, those beautiful bright oranges and dark red leaves eventually fall from their trees, blanketing yards. While they’re beautiful, falling leaves can be a nuisance, especially for homeowners. Luckily, there are some things you can do to keep the leaves in your yard and on your home at a minimum. If you’re ready to keep your home better protected from leaves, keep reading to learn 4 tips for dealing with leaves this fall.

1. Keep up with Raking

It starts slowly: there’s a crispness in the air and you notice a few leaves on the trees in your yard have started to change. Next thing you know your yard is covered in a blanket of leaves and the tree is bare, signaling fall is in full swing. While it may seem like a no-brainer, it’s best to keep up with raking this fall to keep leaves at a minimum.

St. Louis is home to many deciduous trees like elms, oaks, and maples that shed leaves each fall. Odds are your yard has at least one of these types of trees. If so then your yard will be covered in no time. To make raking less daunting, rake the leaves often into small piles and use a tarp to drag them to where you’d like to dispose of them. Raking leaves often will be easier to maneuver and less daunting than raking once or twice with large piles.

2. Use Leaves as Mulch

Yes, leaves can be used as a natural mulch for some gardens! Leaves from deciduous trees contain many nutrients that get soaked into the leaf from the tree’s roots. These nutrients work great to naturally mulch certain plants and garden beds. A bonus to using leaves as mulch? If placed in the fall or winter months they can retain moisture, keeping the soil moist and keeping weeds out when spring rolls around.

Leaf shredders work great but you can also mulch leaves by mowing over them multiple times with a traditional lawnmower. After mowing, collect the mulched leaves and place them in your garden beds and around plants and shrubs. Your plants will be lusher by springtime all thanks to those pesky leaves!

3. Don’t Let them Sit on Your Roof

Wet leaves are heavy. Depending on the type of roof you have, you might not want leaves to pile up and collect all fall. Fallen leaves that are left to collect on a roof can cause all sorts of issues: roof shingle corrosion, sagging, uneven spots in your roof, etc.

Rather than attempt to remove leaves from your roof, contact a roofing specialist. Climbing a roof is very dangerous, even more so during fall when leaves are so slick. A professional will remove the leaves to ensure your shingles don’t warp and your roof doesn’t sag as a result of fallen leaves.

4. Keep Your Gutters Clean

Leaves always seem to find their way into the most inconvenient places and gutter systems are no exception. Half-round gutter systems house many leaves each fall since the inside of the gutter is completely exposed. The weight of these leaves can and often does cause issues like sagging gutters, clogs, and overflows as a result of water not being able to pass through the gutter due to a blockage of leaves. Clogged and sagging gutters can cause nightmares for homeowners like flooded basements, damaged soffit and fascia boards, and even foundation damage.

A short-term solution to keeping clogs and heavy leaves at bay is to clean your gutters. Cleaning them often will help remove any debris like fallen leaves and twigs that can cause clogs. No homeowner likes to clean their half-round gutters, but it’s crucial for extending the health and lifespan of your gutter system.


Fallen leaves are beautiful, however, they do cause issues if not taken care of. By following the 4 tips above, your home’s roof, gutter system, and gardens will be in much better shape.

Tired of cleaning your half-round gutter system? Say goodbye to the daunting task of cleaning your gutters for good by installing the K-Guard Leaf Free Gutter System. Unlike most other systems, our product has a curved hood that enables leaves and other debris to simply slide off the gutter system. The result? No clogs and you’ll never need to clean your gutters again.

The K-Guard Leaf Free Gutter System works better than traditional gutter systems and gutter screens and filters. Debris can still get trapped in screens and filters whereas the K-Guard Gutter System keeps all debris out. Plus, K-Guard will never void your roof’s warranty, something most other gutter systems can’t guarantee. Our gutter product is so durable that it’s backed by three lifetime warranties!

We offer free in-home estimates that include a detailed analysis of your current gutter system along with estimated costs for installing your K-Guard Gutter System. K-Guard proudly offers our gutter installation service to homeowners in St. Louis and surrounding areas.

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