Autumn is a beautiful time of the year but those falling leaves create a huge mess! What to do with all the leaves in your yard? You can rake them up and throw them out but I’ve got some better ideas for using the dried leaves.
I share 5 solutions on what to do with leaves in yard that will help you make the most of this natural occurrence without the frustration of just raking them and throwing them out.
I recommend doing any of these before winter sets in.
What to do with leaves in yard- 5 clever ideas
Use leaves as mulch in your garden beds
Dead leaves make a great form of mulch in your garden rather than you having to buy bark mulch. Just sprinkle the dried dead leaves throughout your garden so that they protect your garden from winter frost.
The nutrients in your leaves are added to the soil, which improves the health of your soil which in turn improves the health of your plants. This is a great and cost-effective way to improve your soil and plant’s health without spending a fortune. Much better than throwing out the leaves!
Use leaves in your empty vegetable garden patches
Rather than leaving your vegetable patches bare during winter, adding leaves to the vegetable patch prevents weeds from growing. This means less weeding for you when it’s spring! This is a great way to prepare your vegetable patches for winter.
Leaves are great for crafting
If you have kids, or you yourself enjoy crafting, dried leaves are great for art and craft projects. You can press leaves and dry them out and frame them as a piece of artwork. The possibilities are endless!
Even if you don’t have kids, your local kindergarten may appreciate a bag of dry dead leaves from your yard!
Mulch the leaves and sprinkle over your lawn
You can mow over your dead leaves and use it as mulch on your lawn. This will protect your lawn from winter frost and snow by adding an extra layer of protection.
Add dead leaves to your compost bin
If you have a compost bin, add the leaves to it because the calcium and magnesium in leaf mold will help add nutrients to your compost bin.
Come spring when you’re ready to plant new vegetable seedlings, the compost will have added nutrients from your autumn leaves and will be ready to use in your vegetable patch.
A bonus idea- bag your leaves and give to someone else
If you have friends who are gardeners or are part of a gardening club, bag your autumn leaves and see if anyone else would like them for their own mulching. This is much better than throwing them out! It’s best to do this when the leaves are dry and not after rain when the leaves are wet and soggy.
A final tip on what to do with leaves in yard
It’s much easier to mulch your garden and vegetable patches with dry leaves, so I recommend raking your leaves during dry weather before winter sets in. It will make it easier for you to bag up to give to someone else too.
