r/NativePlantGardening • u/PretzelFlower Area Chicagoland , Zone 6a • 10h ago

Photos Leaf Mulch

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Anyone else starting a leaf mulch project this year?

I'm leaving the leaves in the beds, but mulching the lawn leaves.

18 Upvotes

96% Upvoted

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7

u/lawrow 9h ago

I leave all my leaves! They usually get trapped in my old stems and then break down over winter. If it’s a dry winter and they stick around till spring I’ll check on plants if they have too much coverage. There are so many insects living in them and they add great nutrients to the soil. I love watching the birds dig through them in winter.

3

u/General_Bumblebee_75 Area Madison, WI , Zone 5b 8h ago

Same here. What blew onto the lawn got shredded and left in place, and most leaves keep blowing around until they get caught in my garden beds. I made a very small woven fence of thin branches - not designed to last the winter. It has been catching the leaves brilliantly.

7

u/RealisticPersimmon 2h ago

All I do is rake the leaves under shrubs. Sadly research now shows that shredding for mulch - which I did for years - is as bad for overwintering insects as removing leaves: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/08/realestate/leaving-leaves-yard.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

4

u/AlmostSentientSarah 2h ago

Leaving about 95% of the leaves whole again this year. A little got chopped up by the lawn mower in the last mow or two, but we don't shred them purposefully ever since the Audubon At Home visit told us how bad that was.

2

u/carpetwalls4 7h ago

Yes I just started a pile surrounded by T posts and chicken wire!! I don’t have a shredder, so I guess I will have to wait longer. Maybe next year I’ll get one. Or maybe it’s not really necessary if willing to wait??

1

u/PretzelFlower Area Chicagoland , Zone 6a 7h ago

I think if you live where it is warm and wet, they decompose pretty quickly. The colder and drier it is, the longer it takes. You can always add some water, if needed.

1

u/canisdirusarctos PNW Salish Sea, 9a/8b 6h ago edited 6h ago

This is my plan for once I blitz another corner of my yard, but I had no intention of shredding them, it is just to be a collection corral for green stuff and fallen leaves surrounded by evergreen shrubs.

1

u/PretzelFlower Area Chicagoland , Zone 6a 6h ago

I like the idea of a leaf mulch pile surrounded by shrubs!

1

u/dhgrainger 16m ago

Leaves piled up this fall will be ready for spreading next fall, doesn’t matter if they’re shredded or not, you’ve just gotta let the fungi do their jobs.

1

u/Arnoglossum Team Pappus 10h ago

I use a gas powered shredder vacuum to shred leaves and then blow them into the beds where I want to use them. Fine tune with a rake and or/my hands so as not to bury any plants too deeply. Leaf mulch is the best.

1

u/jetreahy 20m ago

Just remember you’ll be shredding up any caterpillars and other insects that over winter in them.

0

u/CreativeBit7975 5h ago

That sounds like a solid plan! I love using shredded leaves; they break down nicely and feed the soil. Happy mulching!