Ok, probably most of us have an abundance of autumn leaves all over. Some people waste them by burning them. 1. compost-- it makes FREE DIRT for your garden. 2. mulch -- it keeps your flowers warm over the winter, and ends up enriching your soil. 3. oak leaves--makes those lovely BLUE hydrangea flowers on your snowball bushes if you have them. Roses love them too according to David Austin roses. 4. Fill your tubs with them to make more FREE dirt for your flowers. It will save you $$$$$ at the garden center in the spring. 5. When they are still fresh, you can use the prettiest ones in crafts. 6. Add them to your chicken coops/pens for the chickens to play with, or for bedding. 7. pine needles am adding them to my horse's bedding. I tried them on my one rose bush this past year, and it bloomed quite well. It also helped keep insects at bay. 8. "lasagna gardening" or "layer gardening". Put down newspaper and cardboard where you want new flower or veggie beds, top with wet leaves to weigh it down. It will make nice beds. Or add them to raised beds to save $$$$ on soil purchases. Any other ideas ?
Depending on what butterflies you have in your area, you might want to leave them on the ground as mulch/ground cover for the winter. Many butterfly and/or moth caterpillars spend the winter buried under the leaves as either caterpillars or in their chrysalis. Doing much of anything besides leaving them where they lie could mean fewer butterlies and moths in your garden next spring.
My kids rack the maple leaves up into enormous piles and then jump in them over and over with friends and even the dog. When the novelty wears off, the leaves get turned into mulch at our house.
The majority of mine will just lay where they fall. I do plan on putting the bag on the push mower and make a quick pass over an area and then add it to the compost bin.
We or should I say I, Blow the leaves off of the grass areas my Work-X leaf blower/chopper. I then turn the machine on to vacuum mode. It has an attached bag so when that is full of chopped up leaves I make a trip to the veggie garden and put them on top to be worked in the spring. I like some of the other suggestions from A and will be trying them out. Of yes, of course my grandson loves to come out and play in the leaf piles I leave in one area that is mostly bare ground.
I agree with all of the above. I also use some for zone-cheating. A big pile of them over a marginally hardy plant after it's gone dormant can increase the chances of success.
You can use Oak leafs for aquariums, only the ones that have fallen freely from the tree. * Boil them for natural tannins for a dark water setup, which most fish love! * Stuff a bunch into a gallon bottle and let them soak, I forget how long, you can then use this water as a natural medicine for Betta fish, I would research if you plan to use for others. * Use them as a replacement for Indian Almond leaves. This helps stimulate breeding, and the tannins that darken the water give the fish a more natural home. Basically the same thing as a Betta Spa product. I used them quite often when I kept a lot of Betta fish. From what I have read and been told, Oak leaves have several benefits for Betta and I would guess for others as well.
Cool Busted. I did not know the fish like oak leaf "tea". I have heard they are good for worming horses too.
