I cut all the tops of old perennials off and rake out some of the leaves...leaving a few to get buried by the new mulch I have to put down every summer! I do not extensively clean out any part of the garden really.....even the veggie area I try to trun some of the leaves into the soil as mulch! Window boxes....I clean those out pretty good!

I'm going to leave everything there this year. Last year my husband raked aggressively around this time and tore the heck out of the tulip leaves and the first flush of hosta, which were then ragged for the rest of their season. I didn't like that, so they can stay 'au natural' this year. If anyone asks, I'll tell them it's "leaf mulch". Heck, I plan to layer it on even thicker once the lawn guy comes back with his mower and I can get him to use it as a shredder.

In the fall I remove anything that sticks up - flower stems and spent stalks. But other than that, I leave the stuff there. In December I put leaves on top of everything, maybe two or three inches. That's what's there now and it's going to stay. The tulips are emerging through it just fine.

I have a few perennials that I clean around every year, they aren't exactly wildflowers, they have been engineered for gardens so I take extra steps with them. Everything else is left to battle it out on their own.

I'll pull out the stuff that might smother other plants or will get blown into other people's gardens. I'm pretty fastidious around the pond since I want clean, detritus-free water.

Otherwise, I figure I leave about 20% overall. Raking out dead stuff when soft new leaves and stalks are coming out of the ground isn't a great idea.

I also leave about three inches of old stalk; that's my way of knowing there's something in the ground underneath them. I can't tell you how many times I've sliced through dormant lilies with my shovel in the spring, trying to plant something new.

I am glad to here that many do not clean their gardens to bare dirt. Exposed dirt also means less of the natural soil fauna that keeps it healthy. By this I mean the natural and beneficial soil organisms, micro-organisms, fungi, bacteria, worms, and yes, even insects. Leaving your soils "au natural" goes a long way in preventing other problems that might otherwise crop up, like compact soil, too high or too low pH, correct water retention, poor water conservation and soil baking.

Of course, there are times when real cleaning is wise. It is always a good idea to remove diseased or insect infested refuse that would serve as inoculum the following season. And certain plants, like bearded iris and most true alpines, complain terribly if mulched with organic materials.

So as you might expect, my mulches are never completely remove. But I do usually remove dead material from the garden plants themselves. And I must admit that, temporarily, I even remove most of the mulch in gardens that I do significant replanting.

Thanks, I feel less like a garden renegade. John - leaving a bit of lily or other late risers is a great idea. I'm forever crowding them. Another reason not to remove everything.

Ted

I am glad everyone responded! I was wondering this too! My neighbors totally rake out their garden of primarily hostas and nit pick it! I am now going to leave all of the leaves in my garden , after reading everyones post...and just mulch with new wood chips over it! I realized last year that I do not need to spend 150.00 on bagged mulch...I go get it from the FREE mulch area of the city in a truck load! I love it! I am a sort-of newbie so I was wondering if how I was doing it was right!

I clip my perennials back and take off as much as I can around my iris. I have such a mix of varieties that my bearded iris really don't get terribly cleaned up either - I make sure they are somewhat exposed, but around here it's kinda hopeless - but they haven't complained yet and keep spreading! I leave a light layer of last winter's leaves about, and even mound them around the bases of my roses and clematis because they both like that. I do try and get everything off the thyme plants though, as if I don't they simply spread underneath the leaves and are much harder to control. Out in the butterfly bed I *really* should burn my prairie grass clumps, but instead I clip them WAY back and run my gloved (very important) hands through the stubble until I break it up and expose the new green growth. I think this year I'll spread a little of our burn ash on them too. It's all from burning the stuff I cut out of the same bed anyway so I'm essentially doing nature's job just more safely!

-Marie