September 9th, 2010 • 03:09
Can I Leave Bradford Pear Leaves In My Patchy Yard?
I live in Raleigh NC and have a patchy yard with a plenty of bare spots, which are covered by fallen Fall leaves from a Bradford Pear tree. The bald spots are due to kids playing soccer in it. I am wondering whether should I not rake the leaves hoping they will help with soil development. Currently I have Fescue but plan to sew Zoysia next year because my yard gets a lot of sun and have very hard time keeping the yard optimally hydrated? So the question is should I rake them or not? I googled for Chemistry of Bradford Pear leaf but did not find any usable info.
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Sep 9th 2010 • 04:09
by Patchy Yard Owner
I live in Raleigh NC and have a patchy yard with a plenty of bare spots, which are covered by fallen Fall leaves from a Bradford Pear tree. The bald spots are due to kids playing soccer in it. I am wondering whether should I not rake the leaves hoping they will help with soil development. Currently I have Fescue but plan to sew Zoysia next year because my yard gets a lot of sun and have very hard time keeping the yard optimally hydrated? So the question is should I rake them or not? I googled for Chemistry of Bradford Pear leaf but did not find any usable info.
Sep 9th 2010 • 05:09
by $Billy Ray$ Valentine
You probably should remove them as they will serve no purpose lying on the soils surface. I say this because Bradford pear leaves are very waxy and thick in structure and will only breakdown with the help of soil microbes, such as when composting. Leaving them on top of the ground will only further smother out the existing lawn that is left after the soccer damage, unless, you can chop them up, say with the mower to give the leaves a smaller surface area which will allow for easier breakdown and a quicker rotting time.
…Billy Ray
Sep 9th 2010 • 06:09
by Ron
There might be debate over this but leave them on the ground. The leafs will decompose, if only a little bit, into leaf mold which is very beneficial for the soil. However the only way to get rid of the bare spots is to remove the source, which I am sure the kids would not care for. Happy gardening
Sep 9th 2010 • 09:09
by Peggy
I’d leave the leaves over the winter.
Sep 9th 2010 • 09:09
by Charro
Rake the leaves. This will kill the grass that is already there if you do not get rid of them. You could plant some annual rye grass. The roots will aerate the soil if it is compacted. Your lawn will also look pretty all winter long. Rye grass is easy to sow and cheap.