If you’re a homeowner, you’re well aware that every season brings with it a list of onerous chores. Winter means endless shoveling and salting icy walkways. Summer brings with it the endless, sweaty, Sisyphean process of watering the lawn to help it grow and then mowing the lawn because it’s grown too long (aaaand repeat forever).

Fall, of course, means raking leaves. So many leaves. Bags upon bags full of leaves — somehow there are always more leaves even when your trees are bare. How does this work? Witchcraft, probably.

Like most fall seasonal chores, raking leaves in the fall is fun the first time you do it. You revel in the rich autumn colors, the brisk air, and maybe even let your kids jump into the pile a few times. But the joy never lasts and soon enough raking becomes a task you dread and put off just like the rest.

Ladies and gentlemen, I’m about to tell you something that will blow your mind, free up your fall weekends, and convince you to hang up the rake, possibly forever.

You don’t have to rake your leaves.

Seriously.

Why You Shouldn’t Rake Your Leaves

In fact, not only do you not have to rake your leaves, some lawn experts suggest that you actually shouldn’t. It’s actually way better for your lawn if you don’t!

Far from being a lazy way out, mulching leaves instead of raking them is actually fantastic for the health of your lawn. A Michigan State University study found that it can virtually eliminate common lawn problems, saying “…homeowners can attain a nearly 100 percent decrease in dandelions and crabgrass after mulching fall leaves for just three years.”

Getting a dandelion-, weed-, and crabgrass-free lawn without having to use harsh herbicides or endure hours of painstaking weed-pulling? That’s what we call a win-win.

Now, we’re not suggesting you just leave a thick layer of leaves on your lawn until it snows. This is actually quite bad for your lawn, as layers of leaves work to block air and sunlight from reaching your grass, which may end up damaging or even killing it.

Mulching Leaves with a Mower Attachment

What we are suggesting, however, is that you stop raking your leaves this fall and start mulching them instead.

By simply attaching a mulching blade to your mower the process is super easy — just a few quick passes over your lawn when the leaves begin to pile up. The mulching blade chops leaves into tiny fragments, which then fall between the blades of grass and provide valuable ground cover and nutrients come spring.

Mulching Leaves with Only a Mower

If you don’t have a mulching mower or blade attachment, don’t worry. I’ve successfully mulched my lawn leaves with a regular lawn mower; it just requires a bit more work.

To mulch with a regular mower, just remove the bag attachment and set the mower to its highest blade setting. Mow over the leaves just as you would your lawn in the summer. Repeat in the other direction on a slightly lower setting and you’re done!

Don’t worry if your lawn looks a bit scattered at first; it will settle. Remember that even the most perfect rake job is inevitably besmirched by rogue leaves seconds after being finished. Nature isn’t meant to be immaculate.

Note that if you have a compost bin, you may still want to rake and keep a few bags of leaves to have on hand to add brown matter to your compost bin throughout the winter. But other than that, you can probably hang up your rake altogether!

And, when your neighbors look at you like you’re crazy because you’re mowing the lawn while they’re setting out Halloween decorations, be sure to explain the method behind your madness and spread the word: Mulch, don’t rake!

Madeleine Somerville is a writer, author, and blogger. Her first book All You Need Is Less was published in April 2014. Her writing has appeared in both print and online outlets, including The Guardian, Earth911, Yahoo!Shine, TreeHugger, and Alternet. She lives in Calgary, Canada with her four-year-old daughter and writes at SweetMadeleine.ca.

Do you dread raking leaves every autumn? Let us know below or on Facebook and Twitter how you keep your lawn looking tidy throughout the season.