As fall colors start to fade and Midwest landscapes transition from fiery reds and oranges to shades of brown, many landowners and gardeners face the annual task of raking and clearing leaves. While the tradition may call for bagging up these remnants of summer, recent trends in native plant gardening and land restoration encourage us to take a different approach.
"Leave the Leaves" is gaining traction for good reason: it's an ecologically sound choice that supports local wildlife, promotes soil health, and makes the fall cleanup simpler for you. By choosing to Leave the Leaves, you’re taking a simple yet impactful step toward enhancing biodiversity and contributing to ecological vitality right in your own backyard.
What is "Leave the Leaves"?
The Leave the Leaves campaign is an eco-friendly approach to landscaping that encourages property owners to keep fallen leaves in place rather than removing them. This natural layer of organic material offers insulation, moisture retention, and protection for beneficial insects and soil organisms that are crucial to a thriving landscape. It’s a small step with a big impact, making a positive difference for native plants and wildlife throughout the Midwest. This can also apply to your pocket prairie, leaving your natural vegetation standing and also leaves critical habitat over the winter.
The Benefits of Leaving Leaves for Wildlife Habitat, Gardens, and Environment
Leaves that blanket the ground do much more than add a layer of beauty; they create essential habitats for various wildlife species, including native insects, birds, and small mammals.
1. Nourishment for Soil-Feeding Species
Leaf litter serves as a crucial food source for earthworms, beetles, and other decomposers. These insects feed on the organic material, converting leaves into nutrient-rich soil, naturally fertilizing your native plants and improving soil structure. In turn, these healthier soils contribute to more resilient, drought-tolerant landscapes that require fewer interventions from the gardener.
2. Shelter and Forage for Birds and Small Mammals
Ground-feeding birds like robins and towhees, as well as small mammals, rely on fallen leaves to forage for insects throughout the cooler months. Keeping leaves on the ground fosters a diverse food web, supporting not only insects but also the birds and mammals that help control pest populations.
3. Wildlife Habitat Benefits: A Home for Pollinators and Other Insects
Fallen leaves create a protective habitat for many insects and invertebrates. Native bees, butterflies, and beneficial beetles often use leaf litter to overwinter, laying eggs or finding shelter within the layers of leaves. When we remove leaves, we’re disrupting their habitat and impacting local pollinator populations, which are vital for the health of native plants and food production.
For example, the larvae of several butterfly species, such as the endangered Great Spangled Fritillary, rely on leaf cover to survive the winter. These insects play a crucial role in pollinating wildflowers and food crops, so protecting their habitats by leaving leaves in place ensures they’ll return to our gardens and prairies in spring.
4. Leaf Litter as Natural Mulch: Feeding the Soil and Protecting Native Plants
Leaf litter is a natural form of mulch that provides essential nutrients to your soil as it breaks down. When left undisturbed, leaves decompose and add organic matter to the soil, creating a more robust environment for plant roots and improving soil structure. This process helps to retain moisture, reduce erosion, and suppress weeds, giving native plants an edge over invasive species.
Native gardens thrive on this type of low-maintenance, nature-based care. By adding organic matter, leaf litter enhances soil fertility, helping plants grow stronger and more resilient. Native trees, shrubs, and perennials are especially well-adapted to these natural conditions, benefiting from the nutrients and moisture conservation that leaf litter provides.
5. Carbon Storage and Air Quality: Leaves as a Natural Solution
When we Leave the Leaves, we’re also aiding in carbon storage. Decaying leaves contribute to carbon sequestration by storing carbon in the soil, which helps offset greenhouse gas emissions. Furthermore, leaving leaves on the ground avoids the need for gas-powered leaf blowers, which release harmful emissions and contribute to noise pollution, disrupting both wildlife and our local communities.
In addition to improving air quality, leaf litter helps filter rainwater and runoff, trapping pollutants before they reach rivers and streams. This natural filtration process is essential in the Midwest, where we face challenges with agricultural runoff and waterway pollution. Allowing leaves to break down naturally keeps our waterways cleaner and supports a healthier environment.
6. Fostering Biodiversity and Sustainability: Building a Self-Sustaining Landscape
Leave the Leaves not only protects individual species but also promotes overall biodiversity. A thick leaf cover attracts a range of beneficial creatures, including ground beetles, spiders, and even small mammals, all of which help maintain a balanced ecosystem. Biodiversity is essential for a resilient landscape, as a wider variety of species helps protect against pests, diseases, and environmental changes.
When we think of our landscapes as interconnected habitats, it becomes clear that our small decisions—like leaving leaves on the ground—can have a ripple effect. By participating in the Leave the Leaves initiative, you’re helping to create a more self-sustaining landscape that supports pollinators, conserves soil health, and encourages wildlife diversity.
How to Leave the Leaves in Your Midwest Landscape
If you’re ready to Leave the Leaves, here are some simple ways to start:
- Rake Leaves to Garden Beds: Instead of bagging leaves, rake them into flower beds or shrub areas. This creates a natural mulch that nourishes the soil and insulates plants.
- Avoid Shredding All Leaves: While mulching mowers are popular, avoid shredding all leaves. Whole leaves offer more protection for insects and break down more slowly, creating long-term benefits.
- Educate Your Community: Share the benefits of the Leave the Leaves campaign with neighbors and local gardening groups. Together, we can create corridors of healthy, wildlife-friendly landscapes across the Midwest.
- Controlled burns & mowing on large natural areas: If you are managing large natural areas it is ok and beneficial to conduct controlled burns or mowing for purposeful management. This seems counter intuitive, and it is but there is one caveat. That caveat is refugia. Refugia is areas set aside for wildlife including insects and other wildlife. You can do this largely by one of two ways. 1) rotational burning, purposefully setting aside a portion of your natural space each year for refugia, or 2) conducting your controlled burn on a day when all fuel is not consumed, this also leaves behind refugia.
Join the Movement: A Simple Choice with a Big Impact
Embracing Leave the Leaves is a simple but powerful way to support Midwest ecosystems. As more people adopt these practices, we can collectively improve the health of our landscapes, encourage biodiversity, and build resilience against environmental changes. By giving leaves a place in your landscape, you’re not only creating a thriving garden—you’re also providing a habitat for native wildlife and enriching the soil for future generations.
This season, make the mindful choice to Leave the Leaves, and help foster a Midwest that flourishes for all.