Picking up leaves with a lawn mower can be a hassle if you have a big yard and lots of leaves. You need to do it pretty much every day if you want to keep up otherwise there are too many leaves on the ground, they clog up your bagger tube and fill up the bags too quickly.

We used to mow, rake, or blow the leaves into piles, then rake them onto a tarp, use a rope to cinch up one end of the tarp, use the lawn mower to pull it (or pull it by hand) to the area where we dump our leaves. That method is ok, but you need a few people to help rake, transport, and unload the leaves to keep it a somewhat pleasant experience ;)

The new and improved way is making a giant bag out of two 6 by 8 feet tarps attached to the lawn mower. Now one person can pick up leaves and complete a larger area before emptying the bag.

Step 1: Materials

What you use will depend on your lawn mower and what you already have around.

two tarps. I used 6 by 8 foot tarps
duck tape
rope
bungee cord
zip ties
pvc pipe or conduit
piece of wood

Step 2: Make the Giant Bag

Start by placing one tarp on top of the other. Use zip ties to connect the tarps through their grommets. Then use duct tape to tape the 3 sides, leaving about an inch between the pieces of tape to allow air through. Be sure to only connect the corners and 3 sides, you are making a giant bag or pillow case, 3 sides are sealed and one is left open.

Step 3: Bag Support

Now you need to have something to attach the bag to the lawn mower.

We left the rack for the regular bags on the lawn mower, extended it and added a support for the tube with conduit and a piece of wood.

We zip tied a piece of conduit to the existing rack for the bags. Then used a block of wood and some 90 degree pieces of conduit to support the tube. The wood is attached to the conduit with screws.

Step 4: Attaching Bag

The open side of the bag is attached at one corner to the tube with a bungee cord. Then it is closed and secured to the conduit support with rope. The rope is threaded through the grommets in the tarps and wrapped around the conduit. Extra holes were added along the tarps with duct tape reinforcement.

Step 5: Ready to Use!

Your leaf bag is now ready to use! If you're going through lots of leaves, raise the mower deck up and go slowly. When it is time to empty, just remove the bag and empty it, Then reattach and do it all over again.

Please vote for this instructable in the Winterize contest! Thank you!