I wish I had a bunny to help me clean out all the leaves I didn't get rid of in the fall. I have learned it's best to leave them and wait until spring because wildlife can find things to eat under them. Maybe this rabbit is clearing them away to get at some tender grass to eat. via
7 comments:
OMG, this is precious! You make a good point about not being too fastidious in one's yard cleanup. The flora and fauna make good use of all things that mother nature leaves behind.
I've seen squirrels do this, but not rabbits. Then again, squirrels are more exhibitionist in their behavior, while rabbits more like staid Victorians. Quiet and secretive. (Have I been swayed by BP?) I was amused once to receive a letter from our provider of electricity saying the Vegetation Management Crew would be trimming trees in the neighborhood. I now assign that title to my resident rabbits. I think about your advice about leaves every time I walk outside and see drifts of them all about me. "It's for the better," I think. Today's especially warm temperature lured me outside for much of the day. Now I, too, am wishing I could wave a wand and make them leap into a compost bin. I will likely suck them up with an annoyingly loud leaf vacuum, grinding them into bits for composting. And there, beneath them, will be the pesky little weeds whose tiny white flowers turn into shooting seeds. I can only keep them at bay by plucking them out by hand. I am happier seeing the snowdrops slowly increasing in numbers. I wonder how much snow those snowdrops will see in coming years.
My dear old grandpa, who was way ahead of his time in composting and other environmentally sound practices, never raked his leaves up in the fall. He said as they broke down the nutrients they provided for the lawn and yard areas over winter was important for good soil. In the spring, he mowed right over still visible leaves (with his old push-mower) for the first couple of mowings thereby making compost right on the grassy areas.
Mama Pea -- Your grandpa sounds like a kindred spirit I would have enjoyed knowing. He had the right idea, and probably learned by experience. Mine was learned by laziness and then I read an article that I was doing the right thing!!!
xo, Rosemary
Lisa, I am not saying I don't do any raking at all in the fall. I run over them with my walk-behind power mower after raking up the deep stuff. Then I find the wind blows the leaves away and others just lie in place until spring. I have a country lawn rather than one tended by landscapers.
xo, Rosemary
Justaweedatnap -- I have been known to get out my large shop vac and suck up leaves but unfortunately they are not ground up that way. I moved some clumps of snowdrops to a new little garden in the back that I can see from my kitchen window. They multiply like crazy and I love them so much. We have had the 5th mildest winter on record but I am still holding back on leaf removal to see what March will bring.
xo, Rosemary
Oh I missed this post but wanted to contribute my two cents! Of course this little bunny is precious, no doubt with a mouthful of leaves is gathering for her Spring nest...otherwise I think she'd just be digging through them for fresh sprouts of early bulbs. The squirrels also used dried leaves to build their large nests high above in the treetops, and I've seen our resident groundhog gathering enormous mouthfuls of dried leaves for her nest, although it's early for her in this part of the country, Michigan. She's very entertaining to watch as she can barely be seen behind those huge leaf bouquets while sprinting across the lawn into her den. I also leave the last bit of leaves for the garden and little critters to stay warm and nourished such as the mealybugs, worms, etc. who need it to survive as do flowers. I've seen my roses still green and protected beneath the leaves when all else is frozen. Basically my thinking is that Nature knows best...and if we listen, she's always teaching us....
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