Drop the rake and ‘leave the leaves,’ Edmonton arborist recommends

There are several benefits to leaving your leaves on the ground this time of year, according to an Edmonton arborist.

For many homeowners, one of the biggest chores come September is to rake up all the fallen leaves in your yard.

But Kevin Sproule, the assistant district manager at Davey Tree Edmonton, says don’t bother raking them up, as leaves have many positive impacts for plants, animals and the environment.

“One of the benefits is that as the leaves decompose, they will release the nutrients that they have stored in their leaves back into the ground, which is helpful for the trees and shrubs,” said Sproule.

“Another benefit is the leaves can be a habitat for beneficial pollinating insects as well.”

Sproule says leaves also make a healthy and cost-effective replacement for mulch in flowerbeds.

“Those have beneficial properties of releasing nutrients back into the soil, and protecting the soil as well by providing moisture, and also from keeping it too hot during the hot periods in spring and summer,” he said.

Fungal infections

But Sproule warns not all leaves should be left of the ground. Some leaves from trees or shrubs can have diseases or fungal infections, and those should be discarded.

“You will get a dark spot, basically referred to as a leaf spot, this is a pretty good indication that this tree has a fungal infection. And you want to clean up these leaves, remove them and dispose of them in a garbage bin and not the compost.

“If you’ve got a tree with some unhealthy leaves, some fungal infections, it can be negative to leave them around because they can then harbor those pathogens and those fungal infections and come next spring, they will basically re-enter and reintroduce those fungal spores into your lawn and into your trees and shrubs.”

Fall waste collection

For those wanting to clean up their yards from leaves, branches, fallen fruit and grass, the City of Edmonton’s fall yard waste collection is right around the corner.

There are two collection days, sometime in October and November – depending on where you live in the city. The city asks that you put out your yard waste in see-through plastic or double-ply paper bags before 7 a.m. on collection days.

More information can be found on the city’s Wastewise app or by visiting edmonton.ca/YardWaste