What is the best thing to do with fallen leaves, instead of burning them?

Answer 1

ASK ANY TREE
they have been dealing with fallen leaves for millions of years ,so one can assume that they know best.

A tree in its life time produces most of its own soil with the leaves it discards .

They rot and turn to compost under ,what is called the drip line ,the outer circumference of its crown.

The leaves conserve the humidity and under the humid even temperature cover develop the earth worms .

The worms eat the rotting leaves and with the micro organisms breakdown the leaves adding their wastes and produce the best compost know on this planet ,

That is why forest soil is so rich ,but it is not very deep depending on the age of the forest .

The leaves that drop during the whole year only produce a cover of compost a few millimeters thick.

So if you rake all the leaves together and put them under a tree ,its like a 4 course dinner for them ,and the tree will be very happy with you .

And if it is a fruit tree ,it will produce more fruits or nuts .

The cover also stops the ground from drying out ,prevents wind and water erosion , as well as stopping weeds from developing .

If you have a garden use them as mulch, and put the leaves around the plants .

To burn the leaves on the other hand adds to air pollution and is a big waste of an important natural resource.

Answer 2

Fallen leaves are one of the best fertilizers there is. I rake my leaves into a pile and run the mower over it a few times and rerake it all up and put it in a homemade compost bin. It is one of the best things for a garden i have found. I let it set all winter and till it in with the soil in the spring before I plant. Also I keep nightcrawlers in it all winter since it doesn,t freeze and I have a good bait supply all winter for fishing even if it gets well below zero. As a survival tactic, you would never freeze to death as long as you had leaves around.

Answer 3

We bought a leaf shredder/mulcher recently and it's great! It breaks down the leaves into material that decomposes much more readily. You can apply the shredded material outright or add it to a compost bin. I wish we'd bought one years ago!

We also have an electric mulching mower, so the leaves on the lawn area are broken up every few weeks when we mow.

Answer 4

burning fallen leaves is an awful waste of a rich organic resource ,leaves can be used directly or better still shredded & used for composting ,in case this does not appeal to you then fallen leaves also make good mulch in the garden small leaves or shredded material can be used in vegetable beds & larger leaves can go around trees.

Answer 5

With Michigan you can never tell. Usually the end of October is the best time for autumn colors...just keep in mind the later the date, the higher the risk of snow. My parents were married on October 25 and had a few flurries.

Answer 6

You could use them to start a compost pile. Below is a website that says you can start a compost pile with some leaves in step 2. Hope this helps!

Answer 7

Instead of composting them and waiting weeks or months for them to break down, dig them directly into your garden. It will aerate the soil and next year they will have broken down sufficiently to keep the dirt from compacting so you can dig right in and start planting in the spring.

Answer 8

jump in them!

no, really. does your city have a brush pickup program? if so, just leave any branches and leaves you need to get rid of on the curb, near where you put your trash can. the city has either a shredder or vacuum truck and they take the brush to compost for their own use.

Answer 9

I use mine in the composter, together with a sprinkle of dolomite lime if they are likely to be acid forming.

Answer 10

I compost my leaves and use it as fertilizer. Rotting vegetation can be turned into methane gas. Many large garbage pits are now reclaiming the rotting vegetation which turns into methane gas.