Leave the Leaves

Q: Won't leaves hurt my lawn or trees?

A thin layer protects soil and roots, holds moisture, and feeds the organisms that keep your yard healthy. If your grass is fully covered, move the extra leaves into garden beds or under trees and shrubs. Keep leaves a few inches from tree trunks so air and water can still reach the roots.

Q: Should I shred my leaves?

Shredding destroys the insects living inside. If you need to shred, wait until spring, after a few consistently warm weeks, once overwintering insects have emerged. Whole leaves also give wildlife more usable structure and still break down well over time.

Q: What about bagging them?

Bagged leaves are full of life headed for the landfill: fireflies, caterpillars, and everything else sheltering inside. Moving leaves into beds or under trees helps keep that life intact.

Starting this fall or years into it, here's what wildlife needs from your leaves.

Oak leaf with small acorns and prominent veins.

Why it matters

Most of us grew up thinking a tidy yard meant clearing every leaf each fall. There's a better way to care for your yard and the life that depends on it.

Fallen leaves aren't debris. They're shelter, food, and nesting material for the wildlife living in your yard through winter. Small changes in how you handle them can support a lot more life.

Who needs your leaves

Bumblebees burrow into leaf litter for winter.
Moth and butterfly caterpillars cocoon inside it.
Fireflies hide and lay eggs beneath it.
Toads and salamanders tuck into damp leaves for shelter and moisture.
Songbirds forage through fallen leaves for insects and larvae to eat.

Those same leaves return nutrients to your soil and feed your trees. Leaves aren't clutter. They're home to the wildlife you want to see in your yard.

The easiest way to help wildlife is to leave your leaves where they fall.

Bright green spiky caterpillar on leaf with brown veins.

Photo from Nancy Sabella | Strasburg, Virginia

Watch for life hiding in your leaves

Richard Bennett, HNP's Director of Technology, found all of these hiding in his own leaves.

Bee foraging among dried leaves and twigs in a natural habitat.

Brown butterfly resting on dry leaves in a forest floor.

Small fuzzy jumping spider on dried leaf in natural habitat.

Dried brown seed pod among green grass and small plants on the ground.

Photos from Richard Bennett | Speedway, Indiana

Common questions

Won't leaves hurt my lawn or trees?

Should I shred my leaves?

What about bagging them?

Will this make my yard look messy?

Not if you're intentional about it. Keep leaves where they do the most good: under trees, around shrubs, in garden beds. A few cues signal care:

Keep edges tidy along sidewalks, driveways, and paths
Tuck leaves into planting areas instead of leaving loose piles on lawns
Mark planting areas with a mowed edge, stone line, or border
Add a sign explaining what you're doing and why
Keep leaves out of streets, gutters, and storm drains — most cities prohibit this to protect water quality
Thin lawn leaves to about an inch so grass still shows through

If your neighborhood has strict rules, these cues go a long way. A yard can look cared for while still doing the work of habitat restoration.

Tiny green insect emerging from leaf litter on forest floor.

Cocoon in leaf litter
Photo from Doug Tallamy | Pennsylvania

Best practices: from most to least helpful

How you handle your leaves can make a big difference for the wildlife in your yard and the soil that depends on them. The more leaves that stay on your property and undisturbed, the better.

Even small shifts up this list matter. Each step closer to “leave them where they fall” gives nature more of what it needs to thrive right where you live.

What to do with your fall leaves infographic from Homegrown National Park.

GOLD STANDARD - The best!

Leave them where they fall

This is the gold standard for biodiversity. A natural layer of leaves provides the richest habitat for overwintering insects, toads, and salamanders, while protecting roots and feeding soil life.

Autumn leaves on the ground with picnic tables under a tree in a park.

Great

Rake into beds or under trees

If you prefer a tidier look, simply move leaves into garden beds, beneath shrubs, or around trees. You’ll still protect much of the wildlife and recycle nutrients right where they belong.

Autumn leaves gathered around a tree trunk on the ground.

OKay

Add to compost

Composting keeps nutrients on-site and enriches your soil, but shredded or turned leaves won’t protect insects already living inside them. It’s still a win for soil health, just less so for biodiversity.

Pile of fallen leaves in a large outdoor compost bin for garden recycling.

HARMFUL

Mow or shred

If you choose to mow or shred, know that while it helps nutrients return to the soil, it also destroys many of the insects that shelter within the leaves.

Mowing lawn amid fallen autumn leaves in a garden.

MOST Harmful

Bag, burn, or trash

Bagging or burning removes both nutrients and habitat. It’s the most harmful option for local ecosystems and the easiest one to replace with something better.

Leaves inside a dark trash bag ready for composting.

Turn your leaves into a soft landing

A soft landing is a bed of native plants under a tree, ground cover that gives caterpillars a safe place to complete their life cycle after they drop from the leaves above. Fallen leaves are one of the best ways to help establish one.

Explore Soft Landings

Young plants around a tree trunk in a mulched circular bed.

Photo from Richard Bennett | Speedway, Indiana

Spotlight on the Xerces Society

Leave the Leaves began with The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, which has spent decades protecting habitat for pollinators and other invertebrates. We're proud to help carry their message to the Homegrown National Park community.

Leafy habitat poster about nesting and overwintering for pollinators and beneficial insects.

Download Xerces' free guide, Nesting and Overwintering Habitat

Download

Map showing widespread green markers across the United States highlighting community gardens and eco.

Make your leaves count

Track Your Impact

The HNP Biodiversity Map tracks habitat across the country. If you're leaving fallen leaves in place instead of raking or bagging them, your space is helping restore biodiversity. Add it to the Map, alongside thousands of others doing the same.

Already on the Map? You can add “Leave the Leaves” to your existing entry.

Add your space to the Map