Need an excuse not to rake up those falling leaves of autumn? Scientists have just given you one; leave them on the ground, they say, where they'll create healthy habitats for some of nature's creatures.
Chipmunks, salamanders, box turtles, shrews, toads and many other creatures are happy to make their home in dead, dry leaves, and by leaving them on your yard or property you'll be providing them with a valuable resource.
That's the advice offered by the National Wildlife Federation in a blog post, "What to do With Fallen Leaves."
In addition to animals that will be happy to actively live in your leaf layers, many species of moths and butterflies spend their pupae stage -- their nonfeeding period between larva and insect -- in fallen leaves for the winter.
If you rake your leaves, not only are you getting rid of the pupae, you're also reducing a potential food supply birds will be depending on in the spring, the NWF post said.
Not happy with the idea of your neighbors having to look at your leaf-strewn lawn all winter?
Go ahead and rake you lawn, the federation post suggests, but rake them into your flower beds and plantings.
"From a gardening perspective, fallen leaves offer a double benefit," it says, because "leaves form a natural mulch that helps suppress weeds and at the same time fertilize the soil as they break down."
And if you insist on not having leaves anywhere on your property, it suggests composting them by putting them in a large trash can and using a weed whacker to shred them to a fine-textured mulch.
Another alternative is taking them to a municipal recycling center where the can be composted for community use.
Check with your local community; it may even offer curbside pickup of leaves for just such community composting services.
So whether you're concerned about the environment or you're just lazy about lawn care, you've now got science to back up your decision one way or the other.
Leaf litter? Just leaf it alone.
