Trees can make a lovely addition to your yard. They add color and beauty, not to mention the environmental benefits. Trees produce oxygen, protect the soil against erosion and attract many beautiful birds. If you like wildlife, especially birds and squirrels, and you haven't already done so, you should plant some trees in your yard. Even a nice bushy hedge works wonders.

Trees come with some downsides, though. If they are too big or too close to your house, you could have branches smashing your windows during a bad storm. Not to mention all the leaves you have to rake in the fall. That can be quite a tedious job. Many people have started using leave blowers. Leaf blowers produce a lot of pollution in the air as well as noise pollution, driving your neighbors crazy.

Lawnmowers make a lot of noise too, but that is something we have all become accustomed to and generally accept as part of summer. Besides, it is quite difficult to cut your grass without a lawnmower. Leaf blowers, on the other hand are unnecessary. If you are too lazy to rake your leaves, hire a neighborhood youngster. He will be more than happy to earn a few bucks. Plus, your neighbors will thank you for not using the noisy blower.

Some cities have leaf and yard waste pick up on certain days of the week, while in some cases, you might have to take the leaves and fallen branches to a leaf drop off zone. These are usually located in parks. A section of the park is dedicated for this purpose. An area out of the way of normal park use, or in ball parks that are not used too often in the fall.

The little bit of extra work trees might cause is far outweighed by the beauty and other benefits they will bring to your property.