Shea Simmons
Whether the leaves have started hitting the ground where you live or not, you might want to think twice before just raking and disposing of them this year. Turns out, if you repurpose them, leaves can really help out your yard.
Leaves make excellent mulch for the very trees and shrubs from which they came. All it takes is a few extra steps, and you’ve got free fertilizer. When used as mulch, leaves can help plants maintain moisture and fertilize the soil as they break down.
Plus, the extra layer helps prevent weeds from taking root. And all of these benefits can be yours for free!
Sure, you could also just leave those leaves where they are. If you don’t rake them and just let them break down naturally, that works too. Of course, it doesn’t make for the most aesthetically pleasing yard, especially if you decorate for Halloween or Thanksgiving.
The best way to create the mulch is to shred those leaves. To do so, you can place them in a heavy-duty garbage bag, bucket, or wheelbarrow, reach inside with some hedge clippers, and get to cutting.
You can also use certain lawn mowers to mulch. Just switch it to the highest blade setting, remove the bag that typically catches the clippings, and run over the leaves a few times. Then, rake up the now shredded leaves and spread them wherever you want.
Wanna do something a bit more fun with your autumn leaves and save some cash? Turn them into harvest décor!
[Via LifeHacker]
