• Fallen leaves contain 50 to 80 percent of the nutrients trees extract from the soil during growing season.
• Fallen leaves are essentially composted over time into nutrients that feed a vast number of microbes in the soil.
• Fallen leaves helps suppress weeds.
• Fallen leaves fertilize the soil as it breaks down.
• Mow over the fallen leaves to turn them into smaller pieces. The nitrogen-rich grass particles and carbon-rich leaf particles compost more quickly when they're mixed together than they do separately.
• Take the grass catcher off your mower and mow over the leaves on your lawn. You want to reduce your leaf clutter to dime-size pieces. You'll know you're done when about half an inch of grass can be seen through the mulched leaf layer. Once the leaf bits settle in, microbes and worms get to work recycling them.
