Gathering fallen leaves in the garden?

Question

I haven't been out in the garden much of late and there are a lot of leaves remaining from falling off the trees in autumn. Is it important to pick them up, some on the lawn etc. I think I know the answer to this one : ) I'm also interested in why it's important?

Thanks

Answer 1

Tree leaves are nature's way of redistributing nutrients. Trees pull minerals up from deep in the subsoil, and when they drop their leaves, these nutrients are redistributed over the soil surface. Microarthropod "shredders" then go to work on them, breaking them down into finer and finer pieces. Bacteria and fungi attack these fine pieces, and then red compost worms move in and eat the bacteria and fungi, depositing rich worm castings in the process.



You'll want to get them off the lawn, so they don't block light from the grass. A mulching lawn mower will shred them into finer pieces so they settle between the blades of grass. The best thing to do with leaves is to add them to the compost pile, but the trick is to add them in many thin layers, with other materials in between. That way, they don't mat down into thick, slimy layers that take too long to compost.



Or you can pile them off to one side of the garden, but it's a good idea to cover the pile with a tarp to keep it from getting saturated. In the spring, you'll have leaf mold to till into your garden beds.

Answer 2

The leaves will act as a mulch over the lawn and will eventually kill the grass. So it is best to pick them up.



You see..the leaves will stop sunlight from reaching the lawn grass and this will cause the grass to die.



Now I know you must be thinking that the rotting leaves an put back nutrients into the soil. And that's true. But this process should have some degree of control.



Why not use the leaves to make a compost or liquid feed. Check the site below for more info...



http://www.quick-and-easy-vegetable-garden.com/green-manure.html

Answer 3

Rake them off the lawn, so it doesn't get smothered. But I pile leaves onto the vegetable garden 1-2 feet high. By spring, it decomposes down to about 6 inches. It will eventually become soil, it acts as a mulch, and keeps weeds from appearing like nothing else. I even go take my neighbor's bags of leaves when they put them to the curb and use them.



And leaves/needles from conifers an laurel are ESPECIALLY welcome in my garden. I suspect that other answerer said to trash the evergreen stuff because it's acidic. But since I'm constantly trying to lower my ph (soil is neutral to alkaline around here), any pine needle mulch that comes my way is golden.

Answer 4

Yeah you really need to get them up off grass or else the grass will die underneath where they are through lack of light. I don't do it amongst plants in the soil as the worms take them down into the soil which improves its drainage and fertility. If you leave them on the side of your driveway they will start to compost down and then weeds will grow which makes even more of a job. I blow them up into a big heap with the leaf blower and then pick them up with grab handles and put them in a giant compost bin. After about a year you have some really great compost.

Answer 5

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Answer 6

The leaves left on the lawn act as a barrier to the sun so the grass will fade and even go yellow.

Answer 7

You probably should unless you have a woodland-style property.



Aside from blocking light, heavy leaf cover allows for many pests to overwinter. You can end up with a huge surplus of snails, slugs, beetles, fleas, and every other possible pest that the outdoors can harbor in your area.



Best to compost your leaves, offer them to someone who will, or use the leaves to protect other sensitive plants.

Answer 8

If the leaves are from evergreens such as pine or laurel you should rake them up and trash them. If they are deciduous such as oak, ash, maple you can leave them as long as they don't cover the grass completely, as the worms will drag them down into the ground and fertilize it. If the leaves really cover the grass you should rake up the thickest of them and just leave a few. These leaves will compost well.

Answer 9

got a lawnmower? run the mower over them and the small pcs. will filter down and fertilize your yard with little work.