×
×
homepage logo

Tips on autumn leaf management

By Kristi Hendricks - Garden Inspirations | Oct 8, 2021

Deciduous trees shed their magical leaves to conserve water and energy as harsh winter weather approaches and to assist wind-blown pollination in the springtime. Invest in your trees throughout the whole year and be ready to reap your reward with the autumn leaf harvest.

Leaf through Cooperative Extension publications to learn why there’s no reason to rake if you have just a light littering of fallen leaves. Mulching leaves directly back to the turf canopy is a cost effective and time-saving means of disposal, adds nutrients to the soil and suppresses weeds from growing in turf voids. Online resources are piled high with practical information about fall lawn management.

The eco-friendly practice of keeping yard waste out of the landfill benefits not only the home gardener, but also wildlife. Organic matter such as leaves and twigs provides vital habitat for beneficial earthworms, box turtles, bess beetles and toads. In return, they aerate and enrich the soil and work to minimize harmful insects and organisms.

Save money on mulch and fertilizer by combining leaves with fescue grass clippings (no weed seeds, please) to build your own compost for enriching and moisturizing vegetable beds and planting shrubbery. Store the heap behind an evergreen shrub until fermented. Share excess with friends who have mistakenly depleted their lawn of non-invasive hardwoods.

Trees offer an endless array of gifts. With spring come fragrant blossoms, summer cooling shade and winter lawn art. But particularly now, the wise gardener offers thanksgiving when swirling leaves turn Shepherdstown into an enchanted habitat.

Native trees offer a painter’s palette of earthy leaf colors but are often too large to include in the petite urban or neighborhood landscape. So note these three beauties when out for a scenic drive in West Virginia’s numerous scenic byways:

Pignut hickory leaves turn bright gold in autumn. Hickory nuts may have been too bitter for early Colonists’ taste, but their pigs were known to munch happily on the fruits. That is if squirrels, deer and black bears left any adrift. The strong wood is harvested today for lumber and firewood.

In years past, Native Americans looked to the sassafras for bark tea. Artfully-shaped leaves are bright green until showcasing vibrant colors of yellow, purple and red at this time of year. Bluish-black berries borne on scarlet stalks also ripen in fall.

At a distance, the sorrel tree resembles dogwood with an understory growth habit, fissured bark and crimson leaf color. But in springtime, there is no mistaking the white drooping flower panicles found so attractive to bees. This tree’s silver-colored fruit capsules offer winter interest. Sourwood (another common name) honey is prized.

Learn more about native trees with handy Department of Forestry tree identification and care reference guides found online.

Kristi Hendricks is a graduate of Shepherd College and West Virginia University and a Master Gardener with the Virginia Cooperative Extension. After living in Virginia for a number of years, she has returned to her native Jefferson County. She can be reached at belowthejames@yahoo.com.