As fall comes upon us, so do the leaves on trees. And then off the trees. And then raking leaves. And then reminiscing about the days of being a kid and jumping in the pile and leaving the mess for someone else to deal with (hello parents!).
For some, a bed of leaves in the yard is just another chore on the list of things to do. However, there are more ways to use the leaves that fall from trees than sticking them in the green waste bin. Here are three different ways to reverse the roles and make fallen leaves work for you instead. With these, you’ll never follow the same process for recycling fall leaves ever again.
Table of Contents
TL;DR: What should I do with my fall leaves?
Answer:
Easy Leaf Clean-Up
Mower
Save your time and sanity this fall so you can spend more time at the pumpkin patch! All the tips below are more easily completed if the leaves in your yard are dry. We also recommend waiting until ¾ of your leaves have fallen to avoid repeating the work.
Blower
Many leaf blower models work as a “blower vac” to help suck up leaves quickly, especially in hard-to-rake areas such as flower beds, stones or shrubs. A yard vac works the same way as a mower, mincing up the leaves to pack them tightly in the bag. If your leaf blower doesn’t have a vacuum setting you can still utilize it to blow the leaf debris into one area of your yard, or onto a tarp.
Use a Tarp
If you’re looking at raking leaves or using a leaf blower, lay down a tarp and collect the leaves on top of it. Then when it’s time to bag them, use the tarp as a funnel to get the leaves in quickly! You can also invest in a large, tarp-like bag to load your leaves and transport to a disposal area, then store the bag for next season.
Call in Reinforcements
If your idea of fall cleanup is more about cleaning the inside of your mug after a pumpkin spice latte, call a local landscape maintenance provider to perform the work for you. Common autumn garden needs you can outsource include:
- Leaf Cleanup
- Removal of Annual Flowers
- Planting Bulbs – to bloom in the Spring
- Fall Fertilization
- Irrigation Blowouts
- Wrapping Young Trees for Insulation
How to Recycle Fall Leaves
Compost
“Brown Waste” from leaves is an ideal addition to your home compost bin as they provide a great source of carbon. As composting works best through the creation of layered materials we recommend bagging your leaves to use over time, rather than all at once. For more composting tips check out the full guide here:
Mulch
Shredded leaves make a great mulch layer to regulate temperature and retain moisture, especially in vegetable gardens. They will break down over time and give your soil a great nutrient boost! Here are some tips for best practices:
1. Mulch or shred the leaves first.
2. Ensure that your leaves aren’t diseased or crawling with bugs.
Bring to a Green Waste Recycling Center
If you aren’t the composting type, you can still do nature a solid and take your leaves (and other green waste) to a green waste recycling center. These centers are where we take our tree debris after pruning to be mulched or composted. As mentioned above the nutrients available in this brown and green waste are excellent for soil health.
Now that you have the secrets to leaf cleanup and recycling to make this fall a breeze feel free to read on to learn more about Fall Lawn and Tree Care in Colorado.