Nick Bailey looks at the pros and cons of using a leaf blower
We all know the value of fallen leaves, but what’s the best way to collect these gifts from nature?
If you’ve lived in London you’ve probably come across one of its unique gardening phenomena – the ‘mow, blow and go gardener’. This special breed of outdoor organiser sweeps in once a week, gives the lawn a once over and blows patios and paths clear of debris with a hand-held or backpack leaf blower. If you’ve not seen these guys, then you’ve probably heard them.
Leaf blowers make a uniquely annoying noise, that is unless you’re using one yourself – then its fine! But in all seriousness, leaf blowers are a useful tool, if used in the right way, in the right place at the right time and in the right direction! So, to my question. To blow or not to blow? It takes a bit of skill and practice but there’s no faster way to corral fallen leaves. But what are the impacts of this approach compared to sweeping and hand-picking garden debris? On lawns they’re the perfect device. Leaves blow around easily on this surface, making herding them into piles straight forward. Blowing a lawn surface has other advantages, too. It’s great for lifting up grass blades where an object such as a child’s slide, rabbit hutch or marquee has fla ened the sward. And it has the added bonus of clearing worm casts or lumps of wet cut grass left from the last cut. Leaves gathered in this way can be composted for several years, but why not cut out the middleman?
Instead of moving the leaves out of the garden only to return them as mulch two years later, why not blow direct from your lawns into your beds? It’s worked a treat in many gardens I’ve managed, particularly those with deeper shrub beds. Left to their own devices, the leaves form a mulch under shrubs but avoid the high-lignin foliage of London planes as they take years to break down.
So, those are the blowing pros. What about the cons? Well, the one place I’ve instinctively never blown is in borders. During the growing season, a mix of leaves, dead organisms, animal and insect faeces, and ambient dust and particulates gather on the surface of borders. These apparently insignificant additions actually make a huge difference by providing micro nutrition vital to plant life. Blowing areas such as these simply strips the garden of micronutrients. A be er approach is to hand pick or spike (see panel) the messier leaves, leaving the rest to rot down. And finally, patios and paths – to blow or not? I say go for it to ensure the dust, soil and micronutrients that have gathered don’t go to waste. Blow them into borders or gather the spoil and sprinkle on the top of long-term pots.