Useful Things to Do with Fall Leaves (No Crafting Involved)

by Mary Ann Romans | More from this Blogger

11 Nov 2008 10:07 AM

Sure the fall leaves can be pretty, but around this time I get overwhelmed with what to do with them all. It seems so silly to clean up nature and "toss" it away.

You may have ready my earlier post about My Love/Hate Relationship with the Fall Leaves. We have two acres of property, so that is a lot of leaves. Fortunately, most of it is wooded, so at the moment, there is only a few spots where the leaves have to be collected, along with any areas near those areas, to prevent leaves from blowing back where we don't want them.

That earlier post pretty much says it all. Fall leaves can be fun, but what do you do when the jumping in them is all done?

Fall leaves don't have to be trash. In fact, you can put them to work for you, which tends to make me feel better about doing all of that work of cleaning them up. Ha ha! You can get something back.

The way to do this is to look at the advantages of fall leaves. One main advantage is that they can be easily turned into valuable organic matter that can enhance the soil. Poor soil can be turned into loam, and the material can be used for everything from vegetable gardening and flower beds to winter mulch.

For gardening, shred the leaves first and then till them under the soil. An easy way to do this is to use a mulching mower to cut them up. Shredding the leaves first will help them break down sooner, so you won't see a layer of leaves in the spring. By tilling or mixing the leaves under the soil, you will be able to more easily work the soil in the spring, since a layer of leaves sitting on top can keep the soil cold and wet. Although, if your leaves are really pulverized by this step, you really won't need to till them under.

For the lawn, mulch the leaves with your mulching mower, but then leave them on top of the lawn. You aren't going to work the ground of your lawn, anyway, and the pulverized leaves will provide rich nutrients. You can speed up decomposition with an application of nitrogen fertilizer.

Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, creating a home in the Home Blog and caring for little ones in the Baby Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here.

Related Articles:

When to Use a Leaf Blower

Mulching Leaves

Involving Kids in Fall Cleanup

Frugal Fall at Home

3 Fun Fall Leaf Wreaths

Learn more about Mary Ann Romans

Mary Ann Romans is a freelance writer, wife and mother of three children. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, the kids and a 16-pound cat.

View Full Profile | More from this Blogger

bhuvana (5) 11 Nov 2008 11:28 PM

HI, This is really very interesting to do some useful things from the fallen leaves.Its a great hobby and can earn also.It seems to be very different and good looking. -------------------------- bhuvana

SEO

Mary Ann Romans (26886) 12 Nov 2008 06:13 AM

Thanks bhuvana