USE A LEAF BLOWER, GO TO JAIL; GARDENERS PROTEST BAN ON GAS-POWERED DEVICES.

Byline: Eric Wahlgren and Patrick McGreevy Daily News Staff Writers

While Reseda gardener Dong Van Vo tidied a Studio City yard, dust collected on his most prized tool - a $450 gasoline-powered leaf blower taken out of commission Tuesday when the ban on such noisy devices began.

Without the use of his gas-fueled leaf buster, Vo grumbled that he was already way behind schedule at 1 p.m., having done only four yards when he usually would have been finishing No. 7.

The ordinance that prohibits anyone from firing up these devices within 500 feet of homes is forcing Vo and other gardeners to once again use a rake to pick up yard waste, costing precious time.

``I am going to lose business because I am only able to do half the amount of work in the same time,'' Vo said as he stopped to eat a sandwich on a woodsy Studio City street. ``I don't know what we can do. We have to obey the law.''

More than 300 mostly Latino gardeners marched on City Hall on Tuesday to protest the ban and to ask the mayor and City Council to grant a one-year moratorium on enforcement.

Watched by a dozen police officers, the pickets also staged a nine-hour sit-in and candlelight vigil through the evening, demanding that city officials order a study of the economic impacts of the ban on gardeners and that the mayor meet with representatives to discuss alternatives.

The council approved the ban earlier this year because of concern over noise, dust and air pollution caused by gas-powered leaf blowers.

But the ordinance will force gardeners to return to ``feudal'' gardening techniques, using tools such as rakes that have been abandoned by professional gardeners as inefficient, charged Adrian Alvarez of the Association of Latin American Gardeners.

``If L.A. wants beautiful gardens, if L.A. wants beautiful lawns, you have to accept a minimal amount of discomfort,'' Alvarez said during a news conference on the steps of City Hall.

He accused the city of not fulfilling promises to publicize the ban, and he said it is unfair to put working people in jeopardy of facing criminal charges for doing their job.

``You cannot make the gardeners a scapegoat,'' Alvarez said.

There was no motion in the City Council on Tuesday to reconsider the ban.

As Vo pointed to the blower lying idle in the back of his truck, he said he knows that blowing off the ban could end up sticking him with up to $1,000 in fines or a six-month jail sentence if he ignored two warnings.

Some gardeners will ignore the ban, he said, deciding instead to run the risk of getting caught. But Vo said he doesn't plan to take any chances.

On Tuesday, he tried to make up for the loss of what many gardeners call their most important tool by starting the workday an hour early and hiring an extra crew member.

But the 48-year-old said making these sorts of adjustments to his work practices will hit him in the pocketbook, which down the road could put him out of business.

``I will not be able to make any money,'' Vo said.

A Los Angeles Police Department spokesman said he did not know whether officers issued any warnings to gardeners operating these now-illegal leaf blowers on the ban's first day. But he said the department is preparing an enforcement plan that will be ready in the next few days.

``We also need to train officers on how to enforce the law,'' said LAPD spokesman Jason Lee.

Glenn Barr, a deputy to former Los Angeles Councilman Marvin Braude, who wrote the ban, said he doubted that any gardener already had been issued two warnings Tuesday, which puts them at risk of a fine or other penalty.

Although Barr said he believes the threat of fines and jail time will deter many from using the devices, he said he does not believe the LAPD will make cracking down on them a high priority.

Police probably will stop and warn a lawbreaker if an officer has the time, but Barr said he does not believe officers will respond to every report of a gas-powered leaf blower buzzing in a neighborhood.

``If my expectation is that it is going to result in immediate enforcement, I am being unrealistic,'' said Barr, now deputy to Councilwoman Cindy Miscikowski. ``It is not a top-priority crime.''

Gardener Jose Grande estimated it would take him at least 20 minutes to finish raking the tiny blades of cut grass from a Studio City cement porch and driveway - a job that normally would take him only five minutes with a blower.

``I would be done by now,'' said Grande, his brow perspiring from the noontime sun.

The law does not apply to electric-powered leaf blowers, which are usually quieter than their gas-fueled brothers and do not spew out pollution.

But gardeners liken using the less-powerful electric units to corral leaves to trying to use a hair dryer to do the job, adding that they believe these devices are also more dangerous.

``We have to work around water a lot,'' said Eladio Montes, who was clearing gardens in Los Feliz on Tuesday. ``With an electric blower that has a cord, we could get electrocuted.''

Despite the fact that working without a gas-fueled blower creates more work and takes more time, Montes said he believes his clients will not accept higher prices for gardening service.

``We are going to have to either starve ourselves to get by or go out of business,'' he said.

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2 Photos

PHOTO (1 -- color) The Association of Latin American Gardeners protests the gas-powered leaf-blower ban Tuesday on the steps of City Hall.

Bob Halvorsen/Daily News

(2 -- color) Jose Grande uses a trimmer to clear debris from a Studio City sidewalk.

David Sprague/Daily News