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Autumn leaves
can i leave the brown autumn leaves under the shrubs? I have a large laurel that has shed lots of leaves over the season which are now brown and crisp can I just dig these in to the ground and leave them to naturally decompose over the winter or should I remove and mulch with composted bark? many thanks
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The leaves will form a natural mulch and worms and other organisms will work them into teh soil as part of the natural cycle. Think of woodlands and how they work.
That said, laurel leaves are quite thick and tough and you may prefer to gather them up and stick them in a large bin bag, wet them, seal it and spike a few holes with a garden fork to let air in to help them break down. Removing the leaves, a good weed and then a mulch of chipped bark once the soil is good and damp will certainly look better..
Many Thanks obelixx, I removed some of the laurel leaves as there was quite a carpet of them. I have dug the oldest ones in. The soft yellow plum tree leaves I have left on the bed too like a duvet cover. They look as though they'll break down easily over winter.
It might sound a little lazy: But I lawn mow up all my leafs: so they get nicely shredded and chuck that under the trees etc. They seem to break down very quickly over winter.