Raking Leaves

I was raking leaves today, and everyday since the beginning of fall, when it hit me.  Do a post on raking leaves!  To me, fallen leaves provide a natural mulch for the plants in your bed.  A nice layer of debris can insulate the soil keeping temperature fluctuations to a minimum and protecting the ground and the plant's roots from frost.  They can also provide a source of nutrients.  As the leaves are broken down by microorganisms nutrients are released back into the soil.  Plus, the beauty of autumnal colors lying in a garden bed can be simply beautiful.

There may be some reasons why leaves should be raked.  Like anything in excess piles and piles of leaves can be bad. We don't want to create anaerobic conditions that could end up killing the organisms that help the plant or even the plant itself in extreme cases.  This condition occurs when the leaves have created an especially thick layer combined with excessive moisture preventing oxygen from reaching the soil.  Another reason would be if a plant has a disease, pest issues, or a fungus.  This rule applies year-round since many of the problems that can effect a plant lives on or in the leaves.  Picking up the infected leaves helps reduce the problem population and can, through time and dedication, end the cycle of infestation that plagues the plant.



So leave the leaves! Well, almost always.