Do Michiganders Have to Rake Their Leaves?

Does one really need to rake their leaves?

If you're anything like me and yard work is not your idea of fun, you're probably dreading this one aspect of fall: raking your leaves. Fall is by far the best season, but perhaps the only thing that stinks about fall is having to rake leaves and do other yard work to prepare for winter.

Read Related: That Ball of Leaves in Your Michigan Tree Isn’t a Bird’s Nest

I know that it's just life... I have a tree, and that tree has leaves, and eventually those leaves will fall.

But thanks to the Michigan DNR, I don't have to dread this seasonal task anymore, because technically, I don't have to do it.

Do Michiganders Need to Rake Leaves?

If doing literally anything else with your time sounds more appealing than raking and bagging a million leaves this season, the Michigan DNR says you don't have to worry about it.

If you want to forgo raking leaves this autumn, there are some alternatives out there.

Just Leaf Them Be

See what I did there? If your yard happens to be full of leaves, you can just let them lay where they fall. And if you feel like you need to explain yourself, you can just tell your neighbors that creating a good ecosystem for little critters.

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Turn Leaves into Compost

If you want to make your leaves work for you, you can turn them into compost. Skip the bagging process and throw them straight into a compost bin. Or better yet, throw them in your vegetable garden for next year.

Can You Legally Burn Leaves in Michigan?

Whether or not you can burn leaves in Michigan will depend on the population of the community where you live. It's illegal to burn leaves in Michigan "within any Michigan community with a population of 7,500 of more." If you actually need to burn leaves, you can get a burn permit.