As we reach the end of leaf peeping season here in the Northeast, yards filled with piles crunchy leaves and the roar of leaf blowers are familiar sights and sounds of autumn.
It's common practice to rake up dead leaves into piles and dispose of them in the fall; many of us probably have memories of jumping into big leaf piles as kids before they were bagged up and toted away to the dump. But some biodiversity experts advocate for leaving the leaves where they are for winter.
Ankit Singh, an assistant professor of sustainable agriculture and horticulture at the University of Maine's extension school, says leaves provide an important habitat for local pollinators, such as bees and butterflies. Leaves will break down over the winter and provide essential nutrients to the soil, like nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium.
Leaving the leaves is a particularly prudent practice for waterfront areas, he says.
"Leaves tend to prevent soil erosion. And the way they do that is they create a protective covering. And this is particularly important on slopes and watershed areas where it's prone to degradation."
There's one catch, though: That nice, protected, moist habitat leaves provide for pollinators can also be used by ticks looking to survive the winter.
"In trying to balance the important need for pollinator protection with the also important need to protect ourselves from ticks, we are are often kind of left with this conundrum of what to do," says Griffin Dill, who manages University of Maine's Tick Lab.
"Whether it be leaving the leaves or things in spring like No Mow May, we often have this balancing act of trying to have pollinator friendly practices, while also practicing tick prevention."
Dill says folks don't have to worry too much about ticks multiplying or migrating over the winter because of leaves — ticks don't actually prefer grassy lawns, he says. Rather, any existing ticks on one's property might be able to use the nice leafy habitat to survive the winter cold.
The solution? Designate a pollinator-friendly zone, then rake up and compost the leaves near patios, swing sets, picnic tables, and other high traffic lawn areas.
Composting the leaves, if you're going to remove them, is an important step, Singh says, because dead leaves in a landfill will emit methane, a powerful greenhouse gas. He says it's also a good time to learn to compost at home.
"Leaves make some great compost, and starting a compost pile in your home is a wonderful way to get started. Start including your household waste, and you'll have free fertilized soil, right there."