Fall can be a beautiful time of year with all the leaves changing colors. Eventually, all of those leaves fall to the ground and someone has to take care of them. A common practice is to gather them into a burn pile and put a match to them. Unfortunately the ashes from burning yard waste contains phosphorus and other nutrients that can easily make their way into the lake and result in excess weed and algae growth. If you must burn your yard waste, please do not burn it along the lake shore. Better yet, mulch or rake your leaves and yard waste 10 to 30 feet away from the lake and compost them. Keep mulching your leaves through the season – don’t burn them, research shows it’s great for your lawn.
