What brings the gardener and the garden itself to the fallen leaves: harm or benefit? Whatever it was, but you can not call it garbage. If fallen leaves are used as a fertilizer, then it decays, returning all the nutrients that it received during its growth. Those parts of the sheet that decompose not as fast as cuttings, perform an important function - they structure the soil, which greatly improves its quality. But this is not all that is useful for fallen leaves, because gradually decomposing, it gives and food to bacteria and insects that live in the soil. Their neighborhood is very useful, they remove from the soil pathogenic organisms of a fungal and bacterial type. Annual use of fallen leaves as soil fertilizer, where trees grow, provides them with everything necessary. But not always leaves bring soil and wood, from which they fell, only benefit. If the tree is near roads with a busy traffic, then the question is whether to remove the fallen leaves, not even worth it. After all, during its existence, it manages to process a significant amount of exhaust gas, and this process saturates the leaves with products of combustion of petroleum products and heavy metals. Wait for the benefits of such foliage is not worth it, it can only hurt.
Why remove the fallen leaves?
If you live in the city, especially near streets where traffic regularly passes, the leaves of your trees get a whole complex consisting of pollutants. Trees fulfill their task, filtering a significant part of harmful substances that do not disappear anywhere, accumulating in the leaves. If you do not remove such leaves in time, then all harmful substances will fall into the soil and groundwater. Leave such a litter of leaves, impregnated with harmful substances, it is impossible. In addition, and burn such foliage is not recommended. It must be disposed of outside the city. You should understand that heavy metals and other contaminants when decomposed leaves fall into the soil, and this will significantly shorten the life of your plants. These substances weaken the resistance to garden pests, so it is important to understand where the foliage that you want to use for the benefit of the growth of your green spaces has come from.
Mulching fallen leaves
Another way to use what falls from the trees in the fall is the mulching of the fallen leaves of plants on their plot of land. The mulching itself is simple: pour the protective layer of leaves on the soil around the growing plants and that's it! In this way, it is possible to protect the soil and improve its quality. Pay attention to the soil under the forest trees, it has a loose structure, is well fertilized, and, importantly, its top layer is reliably protected. The sheltered soil does not dry out, it does not erode and is not washed away by rain, exposing the roots of plants. A similar effect can be achieved in your private plot, protecting beds. One of the main beneficial properties of mulching for
How to use fallen leaves?
Composting is another great way to use fallen leaves from your garden for good. First, you need to organize a container for composting. Then the leaves are laid and tamped into it. Such a design can have the size of a meter per meter. More leaves of trees can be stored in special garden bags, tightly ramming them. If you use such bags or created a compost pit, you should know that the composting maturity is two to two and a half years. Such compost will serve as an excellent fertilizer for all plants that grow on the site, and the problem with the utilization of foliage will be solved by itself.