Gardeners are being warned not to remove autumn leaves from their lawns as their “business is far from over”.

According to environmentalist writer Alys Fowler, they are “called leaves for a reason” and may actually be healthy for the plant they fell from. She says this is because they can help the soil store more carbon.

Alys says this not only helps your lawn but your wider garden absorb minerals and water. The leaves can also harbor insects, beetles and worms, says Alys.

And while the leaves may look messy at first, the avid gardener explained that the winter wind will sweep them away. This is when the worms can break them down and push them deeper into the soil.

In Gardeners’ World magazine, Alys writes: “They’re called leaves for a reason; be left alone to carry out their essential work. They may look exhausted, but their business is far from over, both for the factory they left and the world around them.

She added: “Soil can hold up to 30% more carbon if autumn leaves are left to rot. Carbon fuels the soil food web, particularly mycorrhizal fungi, which not only improves the ability of trees to absorb water and minerals, but also the broader lawn and garden.

Alys highlights the elephant hawk moth, with its distinctive pink and olive green color, as something that exists because of rotting leaves. She says leaf litter is a vital place where moths such as the elephant hawk can make cocoons.

However, Lawn Association president David Hedges-Gower says leaves can “choke and kill” grass. He says leaf mold can kill even the healthiest lawns.

He believes that letting leaves rot in your garden means you will have to overseed it in the spring while still watering it to maintain its health. He does, however, say that raking your leaves and putting them on your garden bed can help your lawn survive winter.

He said: “Neglecting our lawns by leaving dead leaves not only harms them, but creates unnecessary work every year, increasing our unsustainable footprint. Unlike other gardens, lawns require year-round attention.

David believes that ‘protecting’ your lawn should be a ‘priority’ as it helps create a sustainable outdoor space and ‘enhances the beauty of your garden all year round’. He champions the need to make your lawn easy to manage and durable.

The Royal Horticultural Society says that leaf mold can, especially if they have rotted long enough, be compost for sowing seeds or garden compost. Leaf mold that has been rotting for less than two years can be used as mulch, soil amendment, fall covering for lawns, or winter covering for bare soil.

It can, however, be infected by weeds, meaning gardeners who make their own mold compost need to be careful. Although leaves found on the street may be contaminated with trash, so they should be checked before being added to a mold pile.