Bug question
Is there any bug which can live in a gutter and eat leaves that won't go down a downspout like water does?
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rainbowgardener
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 25279
- Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:04 pm
- Location: TN/GA 7b
Well there are a variety of critters which eat dead leaves and help decompose them. Some of them are familiar to those of us who keep compost piles: cockroaches, pill bugs, earwigs, earthworms.
However, what you are left with after they have broken down the leaves and added their castings (think earthworm manure) is leaf mould. This is sort of like a dark rich crumbly fine textured dirt. It is wonderful as a soil additive for your garden, but still not something you would want in your gutters, which will eventually clog so the water can't get through.
If you are tired of cleaning leaves out of your gutters, try screening them, or the new gutter helmet type things...
However, what you are left with after they have broken down the leaves and added their castings (think earthworm manure) is leaf mould. This is sort of like a dark rich crumbly fine textured dirt. It is wonderful as a soil additive for your garden, but still not something you would want in your gutters, which will eventually clog so the water can't get through.
If you are tired of cleaning leaves out of your gutters, try screening them, or the new gutter helmet type things...