Leaves are falling, what should you do with them?

The question always arises this time of year…what should I do with my leaves?

There are some differing opinions on whether or not you should clean up your leaves, leave them on your lawn, rake them, mulch them…etc.

There are really only two things you need to know about leaves:

First, leaves are GOOD for your lawn. They are a natural fertilizer. Mulch them up and they will break down and provide valuable nutrients for your soil and turf.

Secondly, leaves are BAD for your lawn…if you have too many. Thick barriers of leaves over your lawn can smother the turf underneath. If you add any moisture on top of that thick barrier then things can get even worse.

The best thing to do is just keep an eye on your lawn and don’t let the leaves get out of hand. If you have a lot of deciduous trees then you will likely need to run your mower a number of times until all leaves have dropped. If all you have is a small layer that blows in from your neighbors, then don’t worry about them!