As winter approaches, we have had a number of storm fronts move through the area with a lot of wind.  A portion of our property is adjacent to neighboring farm fields so there are no wind breaks to slow down any strong winds.  We often have a variety of small branches come down after a typical storm.

Recently, we had a larger tree snap near the ground during a storm.  The broken tree was left leaning against another tree and looked likely to fall to the ground during a subsequent storm. Unfortunately the tree was hanging over our pasture fencing so if it fell all the way to the ground, it would have smashed the fence. We couldn’t just leave it alone to fall down on its own.

Broken Tree Partially Standing.

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We have a lot of trees on our property, including a lot of trees around the yard near the house. We like trees and they provide good shade in the summer and habitats for local wildlife.

However, this fall our yard was almost completely covered in leaves. For a good portion of the yard, by the time the trees had lost most of their leaves, the leaf cover was at least 2 inches deep.

Raking the excess leaves after mowing.

Click continue for photos of the massive leaf compost pile.

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