It's that time of the year. How do you handle leaves?

[rmaynard 14,897]

My yard was clear on Sunday.

Tomorrow I bring out the Cyclone Rake. If this year is the same as all years past, it won't get packed away until just before Thanksgiving.

[Jake Kuhn 1,547]

we just did ours tonight. We have a simplicity cobalt we shred them up with, and we blow some into a reveen. We have a very big yard, took about 4 hrs.~ Jake

[rmaynard 14,897]

I have about 1 acre of oak trees. The area in grass is about 3/4 acres. It takes about 4 hours each time to mulch, vacuum, and dump. It's a ritual that I do not look forward to each year. Now to add insult to injury, my next door neighbors are in their 80's and can no longer do their own yard work, so I do their leave as well.

From now until Thanksgiving, I will not have a weekend to do any serious Wheel Horse work unless it rains.

[Sparky-(Admin) 19,546]

I use my C-165 to chop em up and my Craftsman to bag em. Then they get dumped in the woods.

I've been doing the leaves like this for years and it works out great.

Mike..........

[can whlvr 991]

i blow them into the woods with the horse,it takes a long time every year but its seat time

[CRE1992 135]

I used my 416H with a rear discharge deck and a tow behind lawn sweeper last year. And I also have a little wonder walk behind blower to push them into the middle of the yard. However I would do this a couple times a week.

Last weekend, I used my John Deere 325 with a power bagger, and it works perfectly for chopping and picking them up. Then I just dump the full bags from the bagger into the back of my john deere gator. When the back of the gator gets full I just take it to the back of my property and dump it. And repeat this process until it is done.

[AMC RULES 36,945]

I blow leaves to my lawns perimeter, then mulch them back next door...where they came from in the first place.

Just less noticable that way.

[mowerman1193 29]

I used to multch mine up with my recycler deck..but this year I have been having some health issues with allergies..and today since they are soo thick on the ground I got the green tractor ( JD 140 ) since the 54 blade was still on it I pushed them out to the compost pile. Worked really well too, looked almost like I raked the yard and it was much faster than the multching or the vac cart..That just might be my newest way to deal with them from now on, LOL

Kevin

[specialwheelhorse 174]

Postage stamp yard not to many so I back over them with rear discharge

and that really mulches them very well and just leave that on the yard over winter

[c161rat 185]

I used to change decks on my tractor to the rear discharge deck and use a lawn sweeper to remove leaves. However I have over 2 acres of tree covered land and this would take me several hours. Even worse I would have to keep up with them otherwise if there were too many leaves this process would be almost impossible. So a couple weeks ago I whipped up this little leaf removal contrapction..........I call it the " LEAF SUCKER 2012".......Here are a couple pics

Slight muffler modification

Old window screen for ventilation

High tech locking mechanism

The only thing I would change on this setup (and I will for next years leaf season) is to mount the motor directly to the tractor somehow. This would allow for a shorter hose from the deck and the discharge hose would not pivot that much. I can do my whole yard in about 6 loads. I have far less money in this setup than it would have cost me to buy one from the big box stores( $350 verses $1400 and up) Plus I have the satisfaction of knowing I built it myself!!!!!

[dsholler 54]

At the risk of being a heretic on a GT website.. this is the one task that I outsource. The Riviera brothers come over with 8 guys and finish my 2 acres of oak and hickory in less than 2 hours... while I watch football and write a (large)check. Admittedly, had I fabbed up a leaf sucker, I might be tempted.... but the way my yard is, I do not have a good place to dump them.. which would mean endless loads to the compost site...

[c161rat 185]

Luckily for me I have a large compost pile in the back yard. Cheryl likes to use the mulched up leaves to cover her plants for winter protection.

[Don1977 604]

This is what I use . I also have Gator Blades on the deck.

We are suppose get rain tomorrow and Sunday so I'll have to wait until it drys up again.

[JimD 3,345]

I mow em, and mow em, and mow em. Then next spring I will mow em, and mow em, and... ^_^

[Marv 845]

I use a cyclone rake on mine.

Marv

[6wheeler 586]

If god wants them moved? He can do it. Otherwise, they are stayin" where they are til spring when I mow next. We had snow yesterday. It all melted, but it made me think. Leaves and grass are done. Plowing the gardens on saturday and then only thinking about snow removal and keeping Anheuser-Busch employees busy.

[c161rat 185]

Keeping Anheuser Bush employees busy.....LOL!!!!!!!!

[Zeek 2,284]

Not a Wheel Horse, but works for me

[whc160 74]

I have went from having 12 trees to 3 since I have bought my house. One died & others cut down because they were getting bad. Did not want them to fall on the house. So I have less leaves to do now than I did. Still get other people's leaves from around me. I use a Troybilt chipper/vac it does a nice job, but is a little slow. This week the guy next door let me use his MTD with a bagger system. Was twice as fast as the vac, but did not do as nice of a job. It did work great to pick up the bulk of them. He said I can use it any time I want. So I think I will use it till they are done falling & use the vac for the final clean up. I clean his drive in the winter so it will be a nice trade.

Here is a pic of the vac.

[jay in nc 209]

in the fall i put rear discharge decks on the 518 & the 310-8 & the mulcher cover on the craftsman. i have 3 sweepers & i pile the leaves up with my jd. 310 d backhoe. 2 years from now these will be potting soil. i stir the compost piles several times a year with the backhoe. jay

[CRE1992 135]

This is my leaf clean up team this year a john deere 325 and a john deere worksite gator:

[rick 215]

I have a minimal yard surrounded by trees. I blow the leaves with a backpack Echo blower, when the pile won't blow any more, I use the 48" blade on the 314-8 to push the pile to the edge of the yard. The leaves decay and are tilled into the garden. Brown gold, as far as I am concerned!

[hm12460 53]

I use a agri fab lawn vacuum behind my 312-8, works pretty good. Leave it hooked up until Thanksgiving weekend unless it snows earlier.

[waterlooboy2hp 49]

This is what I built. It dumps, folds up flat for storage and is a good way to use up all those dog cages on Craigs List. It also can be adapted to most any mower, that has a bagger system. --- John

[AMC RULES 36,945]

Nicely done.

Can we see how you mounted up the cage too.