Share the Wealth with Rake and Take

Fall is officially in the air.   Cooler breezes, frost on the roofs, and leaves.   So many bright colored, beautiful leaves that crunch under foot (Why do leaves change color?).  In honor of this time of year the Howard County Master Gardeners kindly reminded me of a great program they provide to residents and it only made sense to share it on our blog.

The Rake and Take Program does for leaves what Freecycle and CraigsList does for all that other stuff in your garage.   The Master Gardeners pair up rakers (those people who have leaves they don’t want or need) with takers (those who can use the leaves for compost and mulch).  Brilliant, isn’t it?

So you have an abundance of leaves, do you?  You are a Raker — all you need to do is contact the Master Gardeners and register for the program and bag up your leaves.  They’ll find you a match with a Taker and the Taker will appear to pick up the bagged leaves from your curb.  The Master Gardeners also maintain several compost demonstration sites and may otherwise collect the leaves for use at these sites.   This program is especially nice for those of you who aren’t eligible for the County provided curb-side yardwaste pickup.

Or perhaps you are in need of some leaves to amend your compost pile or mulch?  All you do is contact the Rake and Take Program and head off to pick up the glorious gold amendment from your matched provider, the Raker.
Not too many leaves?  Then we recommend leaving them to break down and add nutrients to the soil around plants or pick them up and start your own compost pile at home.

Howard County Master Gardener Rake and Take Program

Howard County Curb-side Yardwaste pick up

More options for your yard, including composting info: http://livegreenhoward.com/land/gardening-landscaping/