There’s a big debate in gardening circles about whether to leave the leaves on your lawn or grab a rake and clear them up. While I know what I think is best, I put the question to lawn experts.
With fall in full swing and my yard filled with several large trees, my green expanse of lawn is getting covered with an assortment of brightly colored leaves. While I enjoy the dark brown and rusty autumnal colors, I’m the first one to be out there with my rake, clearing away the leaves.
But am I getting it right? I posed the question to garden experts to get both sides of the argument. Should you rake fallen leaves from your lawn or leave them be?
Why you should rake the leaves away
“It’s best to rake leaves off your lawn during autumn because thick layers can smother the grass, blocking light and trapping moisture, which may cause patchy or mossy areas,” advises Julian Palphramand, our Head of Plants at British Garden Centres.
This is definitely my opinion when it comes to clearing up leaves from my lawn, and Chrissie Handley, Lawn Care Specialist & Gardening Expert at Online Turf agrees, saying that raking your lawn regularly in the fall helps to keep airflow and sunlight to your lawn, which is essential for healthy grass growth. “If debris is left to pile up, it can create humid and smothered conditions, which are ideal for lawn diseases to thrive in,” she says.
Clearing away the leaves also ensures there are no piles of matter for rodents and ticks to settle within and call home.
What’s more, by taking the time now to clear away the leaves, you’ll be reducing your lawn care tasks next year, as a build-up of leaves on your lawn will cause patches that will need reseeding in the spring.
To rake leaves the easy way, Palphramand recommends giving them a gentle rake to keep your lawn healthy through winter, and he says, “A lightweight leaf rake with wide, flexible, fan-shaped tines works well as it collects leaves without damaging the grass.”
Leaving leaves to settle
Although I'm in the clearing-up camp, leaving the leaves to settle does have some benefits. “Allowing leaves to remain on the lawn can be good for both the soil and local wildlife. As they break down, leaves act as a natural mulch, helping the ground retain moisture, regulate temperature, and suppress weeds,” says Chris Taylor at Chris Taylor Gardening.
And he adds that their decomposition also enriches the soil by returning nutrients, such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium.
While the soil benefits, insects do too. “Leaves create habitat for beneficial insects and pollinators, which in turn support birds and other wildlife,” says Taylor.
Although, as mentioned above, leaves that are piled too deeply can encourage rodents.
The leaf clearing compromise
If you have lots of trees in your yard and you don’t own a leaf blower, it can be time-consuming to keep your lawn leaf-free. As a compromise, Handley suggests, “A light layer of fallen leaves can be used as mulch — if they’re left to break down back into the soil, they provide a small nitrogen boost to the soil.
The nitrogen helps keep the lawn nice and green, helping it retain its colour throughout winter dormancy.”
However, the compromise is leaving a light layer rather than a deep pile, and she won’t advise taking this step after heavy rainfall, as thick, clumped layers of debris can block airflow to the lawn. “You want a light, even coverage of debris to make sure you’re not encouraging humid conditions that allow lawn diseases and patchy re-growth to occur,” says Handley.
What to do with your fallen leaves
There’s plenty you can do with your fallen leaves once you’ve raked them up. Apart from adding them to your compost bin, all ready for use next year, as advised by Taylor, Handley suggests making the most of them straight away. She suggests using the leaves on your flower beds and borders as mulch to help retain moisture and provide an added boost of nitrogen over winter.
They can also be added around the base or trees that need insulation over winter. “The thick layer of leaf mulch will help retain moisture in the soil and insulate the plant at the roots, helping it survive as we transition into colder temperatures,” explains Handley.
And she adds, “This mulching method works best on either early growth plants, or on plants that are sensitive to extreme temperature changes, like hydrangeas or roses.”
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