Fall Leaves And What To Do With Them

Fall Leaves And What To Do With Them
By Esmee McCornall

For years people thought I was just lazy but all I ever did with the fall leaves was just leave them right where they fell. They are rich in minerals and organic matter that ideally is returned to the earth in the fall. It's part of the cycle of birth, death, and renewal that makes gardening such a spiritual endeavor. When you rake up and throw them away your leaves every year, you are gradually stripping your soil of the minerals and organic matter that it needs. That is part of the plan. The trees flourish, drop their leaves, the leaves feed the soil and the soil feeds the trees.

You can mow the leaves and leave them and any grass cuttings to feed the soil if the leaves are moderately heavy. When I cut the grass during the summer, I leave the grass cuttings behind for the same reason.

If there are so many leaves that you can't see the lawn underneath, however, leaving them alone is not a good idea. What happens is that instead of feeding the lawn, a big covering of leaves will smother it. What do you do with the excess leaves? Depending on how many you have, you can cover your flower beds with them to nourish that soil.

There are a few other uses for too many leaves. You can let them sit for a few days until they begin to break down and then compost them. You can compost with worms or get a fancy compost system. Or - you can just get a little chicken wire and make a circle of wire fencing and throw the leaves into this little round open-wire bin. You need the wire fencing so that air can get to the leaves and break them down. This will yield a nice crumbly compost by spring and that will feed your new plants.

Esmee McCornall is a 'Gardoholic' writer. She recently published one of the most popular free garden reports on the internet, called "Tips and Tricks to Create the Garden You Always Wanted". You can download a free copy at http://www.gardensandflowers.net/Free_Report.html

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