Mulching leaves using lawnmower

[Durgan]

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?DUQHM 7 November 2011 Mulching leaves with Lawnmower.

All the leaves on my property are mulched with the lawnmower and left where they fall. Come Spring ther is no sign of them. The lawnmower grass exit port is held closed with a self tapping screw. The pile of leaves are run over by slightly lifting the front of the lawnmower, and the leaves are instantly chopped into small pieces. They are left where they fall for fertilizer. It is not necessary to rake the leaves in a pile, but it simplifies matters by doing so.

Leaves are difficult to reduce/compost unless cut into smaller pieces. This year (2012) it rained much after the leaves fell off the trees. During a non rainy period, I decided to mulch the leaves using the lawnmower, when the leaves were wet. To my utter astonishment the leaves were easier to mulch when quite wet. I had assumed that they had to be dry.

Leave are not used for garden mulch, since they tend to mat and can take a long time to compost. It also takes a large quantity of leaves to make any appreciable amount of compost or practicable, usable mulch..

 

[catjac1975]

Pick them up in a grass catcher and add them to your garden.

 

[Gardening with Rabbits]

Pick them up in a grass catcher and add them to your garden.

We chopped ours with the lawnmower and caught them in the catcher. They were spread on the garden with rabbit manure, some compost and some cow manure.

 

[Southern Gardener]

My leaves are like gold! I mulch them and add some to the compost bins, use them for mulch in my herb garden and the rest will be saved to be added to the compost bins throughout the summer with grass clippings.

 

[catjac1975]

I have a small backyard daylily farm. I am getting truckloads of clean mulched leaves from a landscaper. He would have to pay to bring them to the dump. I will spend the winter spreading them on my beds.

 

[RidgebackRanch]

We have been using the lawnmower to suck up all the leaves this year. When composted with horse and chicken manure they decompose just fine come spring. I always worry if there will be enough!!!