Don't Throw Out Your Fallen Leaves

As the sun rises later each morning and sets earlier each evening, the nights creep closer to freezing and the day doesn't warm until late afternoon, it's time to start preparing your yard for the coming winter. Depending on the size and complexity of your yard, and your individual interest, preparing for winter can be a half day's project or a month's worth of Saturdays.

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fall_(6282684630).jpg

One project in particular can vary greatly in its difficulty depending on the number of trees in your yard. A single ornamental tree may barely register a blip on your work meter, while four or more large trees can easily peak your work meter, and leave you with dozens of bags of leaves to deal with. Don't toss your leaves though. Not only is that a waste of valuable landfill space, but those dead leaves still have plenty of life left in them.

Multiple options are available that make use of your leftover leaves, and almost all of these options are far simpler than you might think. The nice part is that you start with the same basic prep for all options and then you get to decide what you want to do with them. Use all of them in one or split it between all your options.

The first step is to shred the leaves. There are two basic options for shredding. The first option is to simply mow over the leaves on your grass. If you have a mower and bag this is a really simply way to shred. Simply mow into the bag and then empty the bag where you want it. If your mower doesn't have a bag you can still mow the leaves, but you're going to have to rake them up afterward. The other option is to gather the leaves up and run them through a chipper/shredder. This option may seem unnecessary if you own a mower, but a mower isn't usable in all areas of a yard. Of course, the leaves could be moved onto your lawn and then mowed. But if you have access to a chipper/shredder it may be simpler to pile, shred, and use without moving the leaves too far.

After the leaves are shredded you have to decide what you want to do with them. The simplest option is probably mulching and from there you can go through more and more complex forms of composting. If you want to use them for mulching they're ready to go. Simply take the shredded leaves and place them where you want, around plants or across entire flower beds. Mulching serves a couple purposes. The first is it helps keep the soil moist by blocking the soil from direct sun exposure. The second is that it helps provide a barrier against weed growth.

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Compost_Heap.jpg

Composting takes more work. While mulch may eventually turn to compost after enough time, if you want true compost it needs to be helped along. This involves mixing the shredded leaves with soil to introduce microbes that will help break down the leaf matter. It also needs to remain warm and moist. A compost pile may need to be periodically watered in dry climates. Compost can be done on the ground in piles, but it's more efficient to place it in a dark, above ground bin. This helps heat the compost, especially during the colder months. Compost also must be periodically turned to allow proper mixing and decomposition.

By themselves leaves don't make the most ideal compost. Leaves are heavy in carbon, but low in almost all other nutrients. It's best to add other green plant matter and food scraps from the house into the compost to build up other nutrient levels. Doing this will help create compost with a wide range of available nutrients, perfect for adding to gardens and flowerbeds the following spring and summer.

Another variant on compost is making leaf mold. The difference between leaf mold and regular compost is the composition of the starting ingredients. Leaf mold is entirely made of decomposed leaves. Simply take the shredded leaves, place them together, and keep moist. You can use compost bins, plastic bags, or just make piles on the ground. Every few weeks simply turn and mix the leaves like you would with a regular compost pile. Wait several months and then it's ready to use. Leaf mold is less a fertilizing compost and more a conditioner for the soil. It helps fluff up the soil while at the same time increasing the water holding abilities of the soil.

If you want to create new garden beds for the following spring the leaves will be a great asset. Start by spreading several sheets of newspaper over the ground you want to use. This will help keep underlying vegetation from growing through. From there spread alternating layers of shredded leaves and green plant matter (basically anything except leaves), aiming for about twice as much leaf matter as green matter. Layer until it reaches a foot or two in depth and then let it sit. By springtime the matter should have decomposed enough to leave a rich soil, perfect for spring planting. Fall is ideal for this because the new garden has the rest of fall, all winter, and early spring to decompose. The higher amounts of rainfall and the winter snows also benefit by keeping it moist. By spring the two feet you started with will have shrunk down, but the soil should be very good for planting.

Whichever of these options sounds the best is completely up to your tastes and needs. Just use at least one of them. The amount of time it takes to rake, gather, and bag all the leaves just to throw them away is probably on par with at least a couple of these options. So take the time to help yourself and make good use of all your available resources, even if those resources are dead leaves.

Tune in next week for another interesting article.

Josh