Don't feel guilty. And if you want to imagine this, think about what happens when it finally rains a good steady rain on a very dry landscape where a huge amount of vegetation is now dead.

Yup.

It stinks like a composting barnyard for days as the water sinks in and dead stuff rots, and it is as sticky and humid as you can imagine. That first big rain will be welcome, but it won't be pretty.

SRS