Short version: Farmington homeowners have four ways to deal with fall leaves. Mulch-mow them if the cover is light enough that grass shows through after you mow. Rake them to the street edge for the town’s loose-leaf vacuum collection if you’re on a town-owned road and have the time. Drive them to the Tunxis Mead compost area if you have a modest amount and a vehicle. Have them hauled away if you have big maples or oaks, wet or matted leaves, a private road, or simply no interest in spending November with a rake. Burning leaves isn’t allowed in Connecticut.
By the first week of November, almost every yard in Farmington is facing the same question. Here’s how to sort out the best answer for yours. Mostly, it comes down to how many leaves you’re dealing with.
Option 1: Mulch-mow them
Mulch-mowing means running the mower over leaves until they’re shredded into small flakes that settle between the grass blades. Over the winter those flakes break down into the soil.
Why it’s worth trying:
- It feeds the lawn. UConn Extension, citing University of Illinois figures, says mulching a two-inch layer of leaves into a lawn over a fall returns roughly 150 pounds of nitrogen per acre, or about 3.4 pounds per 1,000 square feet, along with some phosphorus and potassium.
- It may help with dandelions. A 2009 Michigan State University study found mulched maple and oak leaves reduced dandelions in Kentucky bluegrass plots. The researchers were clear that it isn’t a substitute for weed control, but it’s a nice bonus.
- Nothing has to go anywhere. No raking to the road, no trips, no bags.
Where it stops working: UConn’s rule of thumb is that after mulching, no more than about 20% of the lawn should still be covered by leaf pieces. If you’re looking at a brown layer instead of green grass, there are too many leaves to mulch. That’s common under the big maples in Farmington Village and the oaks around Unionville and Coppermine. Mulching also struggles with wet leaves, and it can’t reach leaves in beds, along stone walls or under shrubs. If your trees had leaf spot or tar spot, UConn suggests removing those leaves instead.
Tips: mow when leaves are dry, raise the deck, make overlapping passes in two directions, and mulch every few days during the peak drop instead of waiting for one deep layer.
Option 2: Rake to the street for the town vacuum
Farmington picks up loose leaves with vacuum trucks, so there are no paper bags involved. The rules are simple: rake leaves to the edge of the road, not onto the pavement or sidewalk, and keep the pile to leaves only, with no sticks, stones, grass or brush. Crews work through town-owned public roads in several rounds from early November into early December, and every public street is covered at least twice, weather permitting.
The catch is labor and time. You still have to move every leaf from the back yard to the front curb, and the pile may sit for a while before your road’s turn comes up. Condo associations, private roads and businesses aren’t served. Our Farmington leaf pickup guide covers the details, and these curbside pile tips help make sure yours gets taken.
Option 3: Bring them to Tunxis Mead
Residents can drop leaves at the town compost area at the end of Tunxis Mead Road on Wednesdays and Saturdays, 8 a.m. to noon, weather permitting. Bring your driver’s license. Leaves and brush are accepted; grass clippings are not. It’s a good option if you have a pickup or a trailer and a moderate load, and you can bring home leaf compost and wood mulch while you’re there. For a heavy drop, it can mean a lot of trips.
Option 4: Have them hauled away
This is the option we provide. A crew clears the lawn, beds, wall bases, corners and driveway, loads everything onto a truck and leaves. Nothing goes to the curb and nothing waits for a vacuum round.
It’s usually the right choice when:
- You have mature maples or oaks and a deep, heavy drop.
- Leaves are wet, matted or packed into beds and stone walls.
- You live on a private road or in a condo community the town doesn’t serve.
- You just overseeded and the new grass can’t sit under leaves.
- Your weekends are worth more to you than the cost.
See how our Farmington leaf removal works, or book a fall cleanup that adds sticks, bed cleanout and perennial cutdown.
What about burning them?
Not an option. Connecticut DEEP limits residential open burning to brush, meaning branches and prunings no thicker than three inches, and only with a permit from your town’s open burning official. DEEP specifically says leaves and grass aren’t brush.
A word about jumping worms
Invasive jumping worms have spread across Connecticut, and they travel in soil, compost and leaf mulch. UConn recommends caution about moving leaves, mulch and compost from one property to another, so think twice before collecting a neighbor’s leaves for your garden.
Quick decision guide
| Your situation | Best fit | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Light cover, a few small trees | Mulch-mow | You’ll stay under the 20% rule and feed the lawn. |
| Moderate leaves, town road, some free time | Mulch the lawn, rake the rest to the curb | Let the mower handle the open lawn and the vacuum handle the beds and edges. |
| Small load and a truck or trailer | Tunxis Mead | Free drop-off for residents, two mornings a week. |
| Big maples or oaks, heavy drop | Haul away | Too much to mulch and a lot to drag to the road. |
| Private road or condo | Haul away | The town program doesn’t cover you. |
| Wet, matted leaves | Haul away | Hard to mulch and already hurting the grass. |
Plenty of Farmington homeowners mix and match: mulch the light October leaves, then have the heavy November drop removed. If that sounds like you, get a free estimate and we’ll recommend what fits.
Sources: UConn Extension, Leaf Disposal & Mulch Mowing (2022); Kowalewski et al., “Mulched Maple and Oak Leaves Associated with a Reduction in Common Dandelion Populations in Established Kentucky Bluegrass,” HortTechnology 19(2), 2009; Connecticut DEEP, Open Burning – Residential; Town of Farmington, Fall Leaf Collection and Tunxis Mead Compost Area. Town rules and hours can change; confirm with Farmington Highway & Grounds.