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       This yard was fine bark mulched; it is now covered with blue star creeper, white thyme; and sweet woodruff; the brown is fresh locust leaves from the tree above.  They cover it through the winter.          Properties from tiny yards to large parks have trees for shade and beauty.   They produce leaves that mostly drop in the fall, and flowers, fruit and seeds that drop any time of year, depending on the plant.   These properties also may have lawns, shrub borders, paths, pavements, or even unplanted waste areas.           Leaves and other tree debris must be removed from lawns, lest they kill the grass, though some can be mulched into the lawn without harming it, with the grass clippings.   They have to be removed from buildings, lest they rot roofs and clog gutters.   They have to be removed from pavements, lest they be a s...

Leaves are the cheapest and most effective mulch for weed control, when enough of them are used.   This natural gardener has been using them professionally on clients’ yards for 13 years.   All other mulches are seed beds by comparison.   Leaves feed the soil and thus the plants; soften it for easy weeding; and can stop sprouting of most small seeds, just by keeping the sun off them.   As long as leaves stick around, they stop germination of seeds that land on top of them, because the top few layers dry out quickly and don’t allow seeds on top to sprout. One can smother nearly any annual weed, and many small perennials, with enough leaves.   But to be efficient with a client’s money, a professional gardener must figure out the least that it takes to do the job effectively when one has to bring them in from other places. There is no need to shred leaves to use them for mulch in most situations.   Whole leaves are better for blocking weeds, but leave...