What you need to know before burning leaves

Is it OK to burn leaves?

Not always, so just a word of caution. Before you start a fire in your backyard, do check if it’s allowed in your area. There may also be seasonal restrictions such as during a hot and dry summer time or during flowering of fruit trees. Anyway, even if there are no legal restrictions, burning leaves during these periods is not the best thing to do if you have respect for the environment and want to stay safe. 

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How to light a fire pit?

When is it too windy for a fire pit?

How to burn leaves in a fire pit

Top tips on burning leaves in a fire pan

Burn only dry leaves

Why? This is because wet leaves produce a lot of smoke when burned, so you can easily become a nuisance to your neighbors. 

Make a small pile of leaves

Form a small loose pile from the leaves in a way to allow good airflow between them. If you build a large pile, there may not be enough oxygen between the leaves to allow combustion. Apart form that, a big pile may create a large fire which could get out of your control, so keep it small also for safety reasons. 

Use a fire pit spark screen

Cover your burner pan with a metal mesh spark screen to ensure that  embers don’t fly from the burner pan onto things around e.g. garden furniture, grass, trees or anything else. Also, bear in mind that the risk of embers flying off is a lot higher if your fire pit is shallow. 

Don’t burn leaves on a windy day

For safety reasons burn leaves on mild days when wind doesn’t exceed 10 mph. In a strong wind burning leaves may get blown onto trees or things around and set them on fire. 

Burn leaves with wood 

If you can, burn dry leaves together with wood sticks or wood logs. They can be a great addition to your wood fire and will burn more easily this way. 

Burning leaves – safety

How to burn leaves safely? 

Burning leaves carries some risks, so be careful and use safety equipment.

Here is a list of things you should have at hand:

• bucket of water
• fire resistant gloves
• shovel
• rakes
• fire blanket

A bucket of water will be useful not only as a safety precaution, but also to extinguish the fire. Also gloves, shovel and rakes will be useful to manage the leaves and the fire in the burner pan.

And the final word about safety: never ever leave burning leaves unattended, always extinguish the fire when you are done. 

How to light leaves in a fire pit

The best way to light a pile of leaves is by using some paper and a match or a long lighter. Place some dry paper under the leaves in a few places around the fire bowl and light them. This should be enough, but it will work even better if you start the fire with some wood first and add leaves leaves when you have a good fire going. 

Can you use gasoline to light leaves?

No, it’s not a good idea. This way you may create a huge fire which could get out of your control. 

Are leaves a good fire starter?

Yes, dry leaves are an excellent fire starter. You can put some dry leaves under your kindling before lighting, which will help the fire to take off quickly.

Another way of using leaves as a fire starter is putting them into a paper bag. This way you can store them in a tidy way and have them at hand when needed. However, remember that the leaves must be well dried before putting them into paper bags. You can also make small holes in the paper bags to allow any remaining moisture to escape and avoid leaves going mouldy. 

What is the best way to burn leaves?

Burning leaves in a fire pit or using them as a fire starter is OK, but here is another idea. You can make fire logs from dry leaves!

How to Compact Leaves Into Fire Logs

We found an article which describers how to make fire logs from leaves here.

What do you do with burned leaf ashes?

Is ash from burned leaves good for soil?

Yes it is, you can add ash from burned leaves to your compost or it can be applied directly to fallow ground and dug in. 

Here we have an article about what to do with wood ash from your fire pit or fireplace. You can treat leaf ash in the same way as wood ash. 

What to do with leaves instead of burning?

Other ways to dispose of fallen leaves

You may wonder how to dispose of fallen leaves in other ways. What can you do instead of burning old leaves? You have various other options of getting rid of fallen leaves: you can bury them, compost them, bag them, mow them into the lawn and let them degrade there or blow them into piles.

Is it bad to burn leaves?

Why burning leaves is a bad idea

Leaf burning is a fire hazard and air pollutant. That’s why it’s not the most eco-friendly way to get rid of old leaves. Depending on where you live, it may also be illegal to burn leaves. In fact, it would be much better to compost old leaves. 

Common questions about burning leaves

Can you burn leaves in an outdoor fireplace?

It depends on your local law. Although it is perfectly possible to burn leaves in an outdoor fireplace, there may be restrictions to what you can burn, when you can burn outdoor fires or whether you can burn fires outdoors at all. 

Why does a heap of green leaves burn with difficulty?

Green leaves don’t burn easily because chlorophyll and moisture in them don’t allow the leaf to catch fire. It’s much easier to burn dry leaves, so burning green leaves is not the best thing to do anyway. 

How to burn leaves without smoke?

3 tips to burn leaves with minimal smoke

• Use a burning barrel
  To limit the smoke you emit to the atmosphere while burning leaves, consider using a burning barrel with a lid.
• Don’t burn wet leaves
  Make sure that you burn only leaves which are really well dried. The more moisture they contain, the more smoke they produce.
• Ensure complete combustion
  Allow good airflow for a complete combustion – this will reduce smoke as well.

How do you burn green leaves?

Don’t burn green leaves! Burning green leaves is not worth it. It’s harmful to the environment and to your lungs as well as it’s an unnecessary hustle. If you want to burn fallen leaves, just allow them some time to dry first.