"Pat Kiewicz" wrote in message

If you plant to use them as mulch, it would be best to shred and store
them
in heavy plastic bags DRY. (We do this every fall.) Shredded leaves are
also easier to compost.

Do you rake them out of your flower beds, if you have them? I debate
whether to rake them out, shred them, then put them back in. Sometimes
that's just what I do. The earthworms are in mass abundance in my flower
beds, and I'm certain it's due to their feast of shredded leaves. The
topsoil is crumbly earthworm castings, and if you brush it aside, there are
many happy worms under there!

I just wonder if I should leave the whole leaves in the beds, but sometimes
they smother everything that stays evergreen (eg., foxglove, sweet william,
campanula), and it ends up being a slimy mess come springtime. I question
my methods every year at this time, so just wondered what others might do.

Mary Ellen