Removing Leaves from Spring Flower Gardens

Removing leaves from my yard and gardens is a two season project; in the fall and then again in April. Not all of my oak trees lose their leaves and this year the leaves did not fall until the new leaf buds started to appear in late March. Come the first week of April I have leave in my flower gardens.

In the fall the city will remove our leaves when we put them at the curb. They will then turn the leaves into mulch. However in the spring leaves are not needed for mulch and today I found out that there is a fee for spring leaf pickup so we are going to rake and put them in lawn bags for trash pickup.

Know that I reside in the woods so keeping all of the leaves for compost recycling is not wise. I will keep only small amount of leaves for my compost but the other leaves must be removed as they harbor borer insects that will eat the tubers of the irises, dried leaves are also are good nesting ground for ticks, fleas and snakes.

Along with the removal of leaves from the flower gardens I am also removing the mulch because it will enable the new spring flowers to emerge from their sleep without difficulty. I use a rubber rake or my hands to gently remove the leaves and the mulch from the flower gardens without disturbing the plants underneath.

Gardening tips by Susan:

1. Late spring or early summer is the best time to apply the mulch as it will help to retain moisture.
2. If you used leaf mulch then add all leaves except oak to your compost pile. Oak leaves attract mites and other bad for the garden insects that are harmful to your plants.
3. If you have oak leaves I would recommend that your burn them or bag them for trash disposal.