State officials are encouraging Michiganders to take a break from a seasonal outdoor chore to help the environment through an initiative called No Rake Fall.
Aaron Hiday is an organic waste expert with the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lake and Energy. He says keeping leaves on the ground is an easy way to give back to the earth while getting a jumpstart on preparing yards for spring gardening.
“Mother Nature has provided us with so many ways to do things in a much simpler and more natural way that's beneficial to the earth and to us, and we've failed to recognize that, and leaving the leaves is the most natural way to fertilize your lawn," he said.
Hiday says the leaves create carbon-heavy soil that benefits insects like caterpillars and earthworms.
“They're going to live in there all winter, but they'll break it down to the point where you have a really nice soil that you can put back on your lawn in the spring.”
He says those that do want to remove leaves can compost them instead. To do that, Hiday recommends sectioning off a part of the yard to move dead leaves over to and leaving them to decompose.