By Pat Dray
The Garden Spot
Pat Dray
I can always tell that it’s fall by the daily sound of leaf blowers and wonder why someone is wasting time, energy and money to have a leaf-free lawn.
The leaves that fall onto the lawn can be managed by mowing over them until they are very small pieces. The pieces decay and become compost, releasing nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. They also improve the soil texture. What mulching your leaves into the lawn will not do is cause thatch.
Look at a bag of lawn fertilizer and you’ll usually see the initials NPK. These are the specific elements that are in the leaf decay. To mulch the leaves into the lawn, just mow over the leaves until you see green grass among the pieces. If all you see is brown leaves, the pieces are too large, and you’ll smother your lawn. Keep mowing. You may want to wear a face mask while doing this since many of us have a reaction to the leaf mold.
The more controversial issue is whether to leave the leaves and debris on the garden beds. As with the lawn, the shredded leaves will add nutrients, improve the soil’s water holding capacity and provide an effective insulation for your plants. They also provide a winter home for salamanders, box turtles, toads and those moths and butterflies which overwinter in the leaf litter.
Notice that I said shredded leaves, not entire leaves. I don’t recommend leaving deep layers of leaves on the beds or the lawn. When there is a pile of leaves covering your grass, it’s impossible for sunlight to reach the turf. Too many leaves hinder airflow and smother your grass, stunting its growth. This leads to serious lawn issues, causing your grass to brown.
In the beds, the general rule of thumb is that if you can’t see the plant, it’s too deeply covered with leaves. The result will be fungal diseases, pests such as moles and voles, and dieback of the plants due to lack of sunlight. Keep the leaf mulch a few inches away from the stems of plants and trunks of trees to discourage critters from eating the roots and tender trunks.
The one absolute “no” regarding leaving leaf litter or pruned stems on the beds is if the plant has had any type of disease or insect infestation. Clean the area around infected plants and remove a layer of soil to reduce the chance of infestation.
Do not put this material in your compost pile. Many harmful insects (especially beetles) and fungi will overwinter in the soil and leaf debris and happily infect your new plants or emerging perennials.
But please remember those leaves are free compost and fertilizer.
Pat Dray is a past president of the Garden Club of Orange and a master gardener.