Fall Cleanup: Hire a Pro or DIY?

Autumn in New England is so incredibly beautiful. People from other parts of the country visit Massachusetts and other New England States just to enjoy the fall foliage. Of course, those gorgeous leaves of reds, oranges and yellows do eventually fall. We can quickly go from appreciating the beauty of the season to dreading the chore that results.

It’s important not to let leaves collect on the ground for too long. Excess leaves on your lawn will block sunlight and interrupt water evaporation. This can cause fungus and disease which could ultimately kill your lawn, requiring you to re-seed in the spring.  Also, how your lawn is left in the fall is how it will look throughout the winter. Do you want to see piles of leaves every time the snow begins to melt on your property?

Raking and disposing of leaves can be labor-intensive and time-consuming. Many people are up for the task and manage their own leaf removal. If you don’t like the thought of spending your weekend raking, seeding, weeding or mowing, you might want to consider hiring a professional.

Standard fall cleanup services vary from one company to the next, but they generally include cleaning out landscaped beds, removing weeds, clearing all debris and clutter from the yard, and removing dead foliage or tree branches. Some landscapers, like Gardenin’ Angels will deliver and lay new, quality mulch. The cost of a professional yard cleanup can range from roughly $200 - $500 depending on the size of your property and the number of trees you have on it.

Benefits of Hiring a Fall Cleanup Service:
Saves time and effort - Hiring a professional landscaper to do your fall cleanup will save you a lot of time and effort. Lawn companies can be quite efficient at removing leaves.  Landscapers commonly use high-quality equipment including top-of-the-line leaf blowers and/or mobile vacuuming (using a powerful machine to remove even the smallest leaf particles from the lawn). Typically a landscaping contractor will haul away your leaves and debris as well. What may take you an entire weekend of physical work, may be done by a landscaping contractor in a few hours.

Professional look – A professional landscaper provides expert service to make lawns look beautiful. It’s often easy to determine which properties have been cared for by a professional landscaper. It can be hard to achieve that look on your own.

Benefits of DIY Fall Cleanup:
Saves money – If you have the motivation and physical ability to tackle your own yard cleanup, you will likely save a few hundred dollars.

More control - If you’re particular about how you want your yard to look and are confident that you can execute it with the time and energy to make it just so, doing the job yourself may be the way to go.

If you are considering hiring a professional landscaper to do your fall cleanup, don’t schedule your cleanup when there are still many leaves to fall (unless you plan to do more than one cleanup throughout the season, which some people do). Be sure to find out what the landscaper includes in a fall cleanup. One company may only offer leaf removal, while another may provide leaf removal, pruning, garden bed cleanout, lawn treatment, mulching, and more. Any professional landscaper in Southeastern Massachusetts should be able to provide a free estimate. If you’d like a free estimate from Gardenin’ Angels, please give us a call at 774-284-1171.


Whether you DIY or hire a pro for your fall cleanup, be sure to enjoy the beauty of the season first!

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