What a fall cleanup includes

If you're deciding whether to have your yard cleaned up for winter, it helps to know what a fall cleanup includes. Our dedicated cleanup crew clears the leaves and debris from the lawn and the garden beds across Bellingham, Ferndale and Birch Bay.

What a fall cleanup includes

• Leaves and debris cleared from the lawn and the garden beds
• A final mow and edge on the lawn
• Perennials cut back where they need it in fall
• Debris hauled away, or disposed of as you direct

Why leaves shouldn't sit on the lawn all winter

Leaves left on a lawn over winter can promote fungus and shade out the grass, which damages a healthy lawn.

Leaves in the beds: a little is fine, a thick layer isn't

Leaving a small amount of debris in beds can be healthy. It breaks down over winter and returns nutrients to the soil. A thick layer of leaves left in beds can promote mold and fungus and lets disease build up. Large maple leaves don't break down easily over winter, so they shouldn't be left in the beds.

Garden beds are different from nature, where leaves are never cleaned up. We plant gardens much more densely, and with varieties that aren't always as hardy or as suited to our climate.

Cutting back perennials, and what waits for winter

We cut back the perennials that need cutting back in fall. We tell you which plants should wait until winter to be pruned, such as roses and fruit trees. Our winter cleanup page covers our winter work.

Scheduling this season

Leaf and fall cleanups run all fall and winter. We can schedule follow-up visits over the winter to keep everything in check, with more visits as the leaves keep falling. If you have a sprinkler system, we blow it out on a separate visit; see our sprinkler system services.

This time of year we're usually one to two weeks out on new work. Dates to know this season:

• Closed Thanksgiving, Thursday November 26, and Friday November 27
• Limited crew from Christmas Eve through New Year's Day