by KYW's Phran Novelli
A listener email asks: ‘Can you leave your leaves on the lawn all winter?’
Well, you can, but you probably won’t have much grass left under them in the spring.
Composted leaves are part of the best lawn food you can get, but whole leaves create a dense carpet that traps moisture, encourages mold, and blocks sunlight, killing the grass beneath. So, it’s smart to collect your leaves instead, and start a compost pile in an out of the way corner of your yard.
A mulching lawn mower chops up leaves so they’ll decompose faster, and a catch bag on your mower makes it easy to gather them up. Keep a wheelbarrow handy to empty the full mower bag into, and then just dump it all in your compost spot. It’s much quicker and easier than raking, and you’ll soon have a clean lawn and a head start on creating rich, nourishing compost you can use to top dress your lawn next year.
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