I am the daughter of a county extension agent, further proof that the apple does not fall far from the tree. In the late 1980’s, my dad worked on a project called “Don’t Bag It!” that encouraged homeowners to leave their grass clippings in the lawn, rather than bagging them. The goal was to help reduce landfill waste and use grass clippings to return nutrients back into the soil.
When it came time for my first public speaking contest as a young 4-H member, my parents dressed me up in green tights and a trash bag and I got to speak about the benefits of “Don’t Bag It!”. I won first place, and that lesson about not bagging yard waste has stuck with me. Wearing a trash bag tends to imprint important lessons on impressionable young minds. Thanks mom and dad!
Did you know that leaves are also a great source of nutrients for your lawn? Leaves contain 50 to 80 percent of the nutrients a plant takes from the air and soil during the season. This means that you have a free, organic source of fertilizer right in your backyard! You do not have to worry about raking and bagging leaves anymore, saving your back and your pocketbook.
Leaves can be used in the home landscape in a few different ways. A light layer of leaves on the ground can be mowed and left in the lawn. This is simple and fast, and you will barely see the leaves in the lawn after you have mowed them. The leaves will continue to breakdown and be a good source of fertilizer for your lawn.
You can also use leaves as a mulch in your landscape beds or vegetable garden. Mulches reduce evaporation from the soil surface, inhibit weed growth, moderate soil temperatures, prevent erosion and compaction, and release valuable nutrients into the soil. One easy way to collect and shred the leaves is to use the bagging attachment on your mower. Then you can put the shredded leaves wherever you need them, such as around trees and shrubs, in flower beds, or in between rows of your vegetables for a good walkway. Leaves that have been mowed or run through some type of shredder will stay in place better and decompose faster.
Leaves can also be used to improve your soil. A six to eight-inch layer of leaves tilled into heavy clay soil will improve aeration and drainage. Fall is a good time to work the leaves into the soil of your vegetable garden or annual planting beds because the leaves will decompose over winter and be ready for spring planting.
If you plan to do some yardwork this weekend, remember: Don’t Bag It! For more information about lawn and garden topics, contact County Extension Agent, Kate Whitney, at the Williamson AgriLife Extension Office at 512-943-3300.
