Our leaves are turning into show-stopping canopies of color. While some of us welcome the season of “falling” others dread the inevitable work that comes with dealing with those “darn leaves.” This year, instead of getting out the blower and spending hours of time burning gasoline to gather up those the leaves and remove them from your yard, let’s talk about how you can put them to work, making your yard healthier for the upcoming year and support our local invertebrates (think good bugs and pollinators). Other fun ideas might be some craft projects that use leaves to remind us all that they are an important piece in the process of nature.
Leaves deposited onto our landscapes provide valuable protection for the roots of our shrubs, trees and perennials, insulating them from the cold, drying effects of winter. They also help suppress weeds from germinating. One thing you do need to avoid is letting your leaves stay on your lawn (maybe over the winter think about turning some of that lawn into a native plant habitat that will help support insects, which in turn, will help all your other plants). To manage leaves on your lawn, simply mow over them multiple times to chop them into smaller pieces that will land between the grass blades and actually feed your lawn and help insulate it.
Another option is to shred the leaves with a leaf shredder. Some blowers are vacuums, which have a shredder component to them. Pretty handy, but can be time consuming.
Any leaves which have fallen onto your flower beds (non-lawn areas) should be left where they fall, as they are a highly desirable location for pollinators and other insects to lay their eggs. Shredding them could dislodge or damage these valuable insect youngsters. You can, however, add more leaves to this leafy downfall, to add more protection.
Other things that you should consider to help support our local pollinators and insects include accepting that a certain amount of damage to your landscape plants is acceptable. For example, leaf cutter bees make perfectly round holes in the leaves of your shrubs. This doesn’t hurt your shrub at all, so poisoning the bees is not the preferred action. Acceptable damage may also include damage to fruit or vegetable harvests. Understanding that if you avoid the use of pesticides may require you to “cut out” a few sections of your apples, but it will keep your fruit healthier for you to eat and our pollinators to pollinate, also becomes an acceptable risk. Share this choice with friends, family and customers (if you sell your produce) so that they can understand and support your choices.
Providing an environment that will support healthier plants will help them be resistant to pest pressure. Place plants properly to get adequate sun and an appropriate soil profile, including drainage and temperature demands. Adequately feed your plants, being careful not to over fertilize and use organic materials that are healthier for your plants as well as the soil microbes. Water adequately without overwatering which will also encourage proper root development.
Before you decide to engage in a pesticide program, identify the pest you are attempting to eliminate. Proper identification is essential. Not every insect is a pest and frequently, they are not prolific enough to cause serious damage. Additionally, circumstances change and problems may resolve themselves.
Look around your garden/landscape often and closely. Keep an eye out for beneficial insects who will provide natural pest controls. Their presence is an indicator of pollinator friendly gardening, which should be our target goal— to provide an environment which supports our “good bugs.” You can also plant companion flowers to naturally repel pests and attract beneficial invertebrates that hunt garden pests for you. An example of these would be marigolds and calendula. Not only are they pretty and attract pollinators to your summer garden, but they do a great job of repelling aphids.
Always try to use nonchemical methods first. Prioritize cultural, mechanical and physical control strategies, like hand-picking pests, weeding, pruning diseased plant tissues, planting trap crops, or using insect netting. My favorite method of controlling slugs is to place 12-by-18-inch square pieces of cardboard around the garden. Early in the morning, simply walk around and pick up the cardboard, the slugs can easily be removed and disposed of.
The healthier we garden, the healthier our environment will be for all who inhabit it.
We have several classes coming up with Blaine CORE to help you get ready for fall. Please check our website for topics, dates, time and location: https://nwcore.org/. We hold our classes at both the library and the Blaine Community Center. They are always free of charge.
