Heads-Up: It's Time to Talk "Leaf Mulching"!

[andy10917]

One tactic I use is to use my back blower to spread the leaves out more evenly, so that all of the tougher Oak leaves are not deep right under the trees and I have some easier to mulch leaves (like Maples) mixed in with the Oak leaves. It works. First, the tough leaves are not pile deep, and the easier to mulch ones get the decomposition going faster.

[Aviator8]

sorry I meant to say I have addressed the deep shade and traffic issues. I have removed some trees and taken the Oak branches out so that the lowest hanging branches are about 20' high. For traffic there was a constant footpath my family and neighbors used that was getting worn in. I have rerouted them.

[lVlrBoJang1es]

I've noticing some odd tree/leaf behavior in my area this year...

Our "tired leaves" from the end of summer started falling in early August - about 3 weeks earlier than last year. The "tired leaves" were dense enough to completely cover most yards, way heavier than i recall last summer.

I laughed when I heard someone say "I can't believe fall is here already!" while we were still in the middle of a low 90s high 80s heat wave concurrently. I told them we're still a ways off from fall (in my mind I can't start putting down frequent N apps yet at the time) and that they were just "tired leaves" without explanation.

Yet when it comes to the leaves actually falling; I can probably count on all my digits the number of leaves in my yard when i mowed 2 days ago. Last year at this time i was already on my 2nd or 3rd mulch mow...

Perhaps the extra tired leaves that fell earlier this year are the leaves that would have been otherwise falling right now? Mother nature is a strange thing...

I have a significant amount of (LARGE OLD) tree coverage in my yard - I'm talkin' dinner plate sized leaves in my backyard. Last year i was double-pass-mulch-mowing 4-5 times a week (literally any day we didn't have rain) anything less lead to complete lawn smothering and a leaf blanket that would never dry out. I struggled with this the first year I was in my house before I dialed in a routine that somewhat works... I was JUST thinking to myself yesterday that I'm not looking forward to the time commitment, but I am looking forward to the free soil amendments!

[andy10917]

My area was almost the opposite - the tired leaves started and then stopped cold. Nothing seriously additional until last weekend, but then in just 2-3 days we went from just a tad of color to full-fledged "leaf storms" where the leaves fall from the trees by the many hundreds per tree all at once.

[seiyafan]

Pretty much same here Andy, my driveway is next to a huge oak tree, and the driveway can get buried with the leaves a matter of a few days.

[zhotster]

I'm in the midst of leaf mulching, it's going well here. I'm mowing about every 4 days. My trees are younger in my yard except for a Magnolia tree in the back yard that produces a good volume. I see how things are looking under that tree to determine when I mulch. Thanks Andy for posting this thread, it got me getting ahead of the curve this year. My neighbors have large trees, so most of my mulching is from that. I highly suggest others to read some of the links posted in Andy's original post. My back appreciates this method, so much easier to push the Honda every days than to rake for hours.

[Harry398]

what is the thought on pine needles?

[andy10917]

what is the thought on pine needles?

My thought is that they are brown and pointy, and fall from pines.

Is there a whole question that you're asking?

[Green]

what is the thought on pine needles?

I think they're tough to mulch because they settle below grass level and have less surface area so aren't affected by airflow as well as leaves. Add a little wetness, and the mower might not suck them up for mulching. I find a light raking or use of a blower to loosen them up a bit helps before mowing.

[KBGkicksazz]

Despite living in a wooded subdivision the prevailing winds seem to blow all the leaves towards the woods or to my neighbors lawn. Our trees are about 50% leaf free and I’ve only mowed once.

However having had a yard the collected leaves before o blew some into the woods when it became too much to keep up with during peak leaf drop.

[Chris LI]

Despite living in a wooded subdivision the prevailing winds seem to blow all the leaves towards the woods or to my neighbors lawn.

I used to have the opposite problem, or so I thought. My front yard gets buried with oak leaves and I don't have a single oak in the yard. The prevailing winds out of the SW blow them from across the street. I used to complain because I was proud that I removed every leaf out of the yard, every week. That was before kids and learning about the benefits of leaf mulching. Thanks ATY! Now I embrace the leaves, so to speak, mulch at least twice weekly, and save blowing out the beds until after I mulch the "big drop". I have to hold myself back from mulching all of them, because I didn't bag enough with the mower for my vegetable garden the first year I went berserk mulching with the mower.

[Fullheadofturf1234]

Any tips on mulching wet?

Been raining what seems like nonstop here.
Drying slows down with the dropping temps. Whats the rule of thumb here ?
2 days after a rain ?

[andy10917]

There are no rules for wet leaves. Bring a blower and a mower and do what you can.

The only thing worse than wet leaves is frozen wet leaves - it won't be long now...

[PW405]

Note to self - I need to make a post to help identify the tree in my front yard. The leaves hang on LATE, and they're difficult to mow. We're just now starting to approach the phase where pecan leaves fall. My obnoxiously large butterfly "bush" seems to be approaching the peak dropping time this week. Picked up a 60 volt brushless blower about a month ago, as well as new mower this season. Should help make this season's leaf mulching a little easier.

Ahhh.... leaf mulching season. #OddlySatisfying

[Chris LI]

The leaves hang on LATE, and they're difficult to mow.

Are the leaves difficult suck up for the blade to mulch them? If so, you can side discharge them if your mower has the capability. If it's a rear bagger or mulcher only, you could try bagging them, dumping them back on the lawn, and running over them again with the bag off to mulch them. If you can maintain good suction, you should be able to get them moving to chop them up, unless they're really wet. In that case, you can run over them once, to dry them out, move to a different area, and come back to the wet area later, once it dries out.

[PW405]

The leaves hang on LATE, and they're difficult to mow.

Are the leaves difficult suck up for the blade to mulch them? If so, you can side discharge them if your mower has the capability. If it's a rear bagger or mulcher only, you could try bagging them, dumping them back on the lawn, and running over them again with the bag off to mulch them. If you can maintain good suction, you should be able to get them moving to chop them up, unless they're really wet. In that case, you can run over them once, to dry them out, move to a different area, and come back to the wet area later, once it dries out.

Ya, that has been the main problem. They're pretty small and relatively dense... as far as leaves go. Although this will be the first mulching season with new mower. I stretched the lifespan of the previous mower far too long. It was 15 years until July of this year!

Correction to previous post: What I thought was a "Butterfly Bush" is actually a Chaste Tree. Thing is like the bamboo of trees. Wouldn't mind if it died.

[TimmyG]

Ah. I thought you might be confusing a Vitex when you referred to an "obnoxiously large" butterfly bush dropping its leaves. The struggle you're having with your other tree reminds me of the struggle my folks in NC have with a willow oak.

[PW405]

Ah. I thought you might be confusing a Vitex when you referred to an "obnoxiously large" butterfly bush dropping its leaves. The struggle you're having with your other tree reminds me of the struggle my folks in NC have with a willow oak.

Willow Oak - funny you mention that. When I filled out an online tree identification questionnaire, Willow Oak is what it came up with, but didn't quite seem to fit. I'll snap some pictures and start a thread on it later today.

Anybody else apply BLSC & KH to their recently mulched leaves? I'm thinking it can help accelerate the decomposition process, even if slowly. Maybe it just makes me feel better that I'm applying something, knowing that winter is coming and there will be no lawn care activities for a few months. I just need to apply enough something before winter. Anything. Lawn care withdrawal is real, man.

[andy10917]

I don't do KH in the late season, personally. Kelp extract contains growth promoters, and that may keep the grass from following the normal progression to dormancy. No science saying it will, but I don't interfere with the transition to dormancy.

[rucraz2]

My oaks are 1/3 maybe done as of today. Though I tried something for the first time. I put the blower and shoot for the bagger on but not connected to the bags. Hoping the blades as well as the blower fan would chop the leaves up a bit more. It worked well. Except when I would turn around the one direction and everything was blowing right on me. Otherwise it chopped them up well and dispersed them pretty evenly.