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dancerjodiFrom our CSA Farmer:
"Raking Leaves or HAPPY TIP FOR THE DAY!! : We get several farming publication including Acres Magazine, Lancaster Farmer, Country Farming and the Weekly Market Bulletin which is published by the NH Department of Agriculture. This tip comes from the NH Market Bulletin’s Oct 24th edition and I thought is worth passing on.
Raking and collecting leaves each fall is a tradition without scientific basis. Research has proven that mowing leaves into your lawn can improve its vigor and observation shows that un-raked leaves in planting beds don’t smother shade-tolerant perennials.
At Michigan State, researchers set a rotary mower to cut at a height of 3 inches and then mowed and 18 inch deep layer of leaves into test plots. That’s the equivalent of 450 lbs of leaves per 1000 square feet – or a LOT of leaves! The tests resulted in improved soils and healthy lawns with few remnant leaves visible the following spring. You can achieve similar results if you set your mower to the 3” height and mow at least once a week during peak leaf fall or when your lawn reaches 4”. Leaves shred most efficiently when they are slightly damp so mow after a light dew. According to researchers, if you follow these simple guidelines, you may never rake another leaf again!"
We have a ginormous tree that sheds a lot on our front walkway/sidewalk, so those need to be cleaned, but I'm less concerned about what is in our yard (particularly, if we are going to be ripping it all up next spring). Most of our work this weekend will be plant pulling and mulching in the front.
"Raking Leaves or HAPPY TIP FOR THE DAY!! : We get several farming publication including Acres Magazine, Lancaster Farmer, Country Farming and the Weekly Market Bulletin which is published by the NH Department of Agriculture. This tip comes from the NH Market Bulletin’s Oct 24th edition and I thought is worth passing on.
Raking and collecting leaves each fall is a tradition without scientific basis. Research has proven that mowing leaves into your lawn can improve its vigor and observation shows that un-raked leaves in planting beds don’t smother shade-tolerant perennials.
At Michigan State, researchers set a rotary mower to cut at a height of 3 inches and then mowed and 18 inch deep layer of leaves into test plots. That’s the equivalent of 450 lbs of leaves per 1000 square feet – or a LOT of leaves! The tests resulted in improved soils and healthy lawns with few remnant leaves visible the following spring. You can achieve similar results if you set your mower to the 3” height and mow at least once a week during peak leaf fall or when your lawn reaches 4”. Leaves shred most efficiently when they are slightly damp so mow after a light dew. According to researchers, if you follow these simple guidelines, you may never rake another leaf again!"
We have a ginormous tree that sheds a lot on our front walkway/sidewalk, so those need to be cleaned, but I'm less concerned about what is in our yard (particularly, if we are going to be ripping it all up next spring). Most of our work this weekend will be plant pulling and mulching in the front.
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no subject
Date: 2012-11-02 02:55 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-11-02 03:27 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-11-02 03:43 pm (UTC)Doing the least is actually the best for the soil. Just another of a zillion reasons to be grumps about over-landscaping.
Un-shredded leaves need a longer stretch of time to decompose into leaf mold before adding to a compost pile (unbalanced ph), but I'm glad to hear they work well in shade-tolerant beds.