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Each fall, even the most nature-oblivious humans can't help but notice--and likely marvel--as the leaves turn. Here in New York City, many folks will go as far as driving up north to New England solely to witness the spectacular shades of ginger, auburn, gold, and crimson. This annual phase of nature presages both the colder weather and the shopping day countdown that lurk in our not so distant future.
But, before the rampant holiday season consumerism kicks in, gaze upward. Take a good long look at the leaves that have changed color and are now breaking from the trees and wafting slowly downward to finish their life's mission...on the pavement. Imagine the shock those nutrient laden leaves experience when they land not on sodden, inviting soil but instead on the unforgiving, oil stained asphalt we all know and loathe.
Here's how the USDA Forest Service explains the leaf-falling phenomenon: "Needles and leaves that fall are not wasted. They decompose and restock the soil with nutrients and make up part of the spongy humus layer of the forest floor that absorbs and holds rainfall. Fallen leaves also become food for numerous soil organisms vital to the forest ecosystem."
However, too many of us view those leaves in search of soil organisms as a nuisance--something to raked and bagged and lugged away as quickly as possible. To leave leaves in front of your house is to risk the scorn of neighbors. Ironically, dealing with the leaves we don't like can take us away from making a trip up north to see the leaves we do like as they change shade. We drive there, of course, in the cars and sport utility vehicles that necessitate the highways, parking lots, off ramps, and roads that--by definition--devastate entire eco-systems and leave leaves no place to land except on three-car-wide driveways. Human hubris aside, this vicious cycle impacts more than just our leisure time.
Here's the USDA Forest Service again: "It could well be that the forest could no more survive without its annual replenishment from leaves than the individual tree could survive without shedding these leaves."
6 Ways to Turn Over a New Leaf
1. Re-use leaves: from mulch to artwork
2. Plant a tree: cliche, but effective
3. Use less paper: or at least use recylced paper
4. Fight sprawl: don't let them pave paradise
5. Fight clear cutting: 80% of the world's forests are already gone.
6. Be a proud treehugger: be vocal about your greenness
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