esti wrote:
Is it better to remove leaves from under fruit trees or leave them to
decay and serve as mulch? Trees in question are avocado, fig, orange,
plum, peach, and apricot.


Not only do I leave them, but I also include leaves from my ash tree
throughout my garden in back. In front, most of the leaves are from my
oak, liquidambar, and zelkova. In my climate -- which includes hot, dry
summers -- the mulch is valuable for keeping the soil cool and moist
without wasting water. This winter, we had record-breaking cold. To a
large extent, it was the leaf mulch that kept my ground cover alive
through the freeze.

Of the trees you list, I have only peach in the ground. Through the
leaf mulch, I have primroses and grape hyacenth growing under the peach.

My dwarf orange is in a large pot, with a soil level too close to the
top to hold a leaf mulch. Instead, I use white crushed rocks.

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean
Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean
influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19)
Gardening pages at http://www.rossde.com/garden/