Garden expert reveals how fallen leaves can 'save you hundreds' in the garden - from frost protection to plant food

Costs can quickly add up in the garden, but sometimes the money-saving ideas are right in front of us. In fact, sometimes we're surrounded by them; take autumn fallen leaves, for example.

Whether you're looking for ways to save money in the garden this season or are trying to add more sustainable garden ideas to your space, reusing fallen leaves is a great place to start. Our garden often produce things that we can reuse to help in other ways, whether that's with mulching, feeding or composting.

Gardening expert Ish Kamran has taken to his Instagram @gardening.with.ish to share the different ways you can reuse fallen leaves in your garden and how doing this can save you hundreds in gardening essentials.

With planting spring bulbs and mulching to protect your garden from frost, the autumn-winter period can become quite an expensive time in the garden. Luckily, there's a budget-friendly solution literally falling from above.

"Leaves on the ground can save you hundreds in the garden. But the fact of the matter is, all these fall leaves are jam-packed full of nutrients and what a lot of people do is simply throw them away, but actually there are quite a few uses for these magnificent things," begins Ish.

"First of all, you can line the bottom of your planters with just this. You can chuck it straight in, put a layer of compost over the top, and you're saving a third in compost just by shoving this underneath. And this will still break down and turn into compost," he adds.

"You're also saving money on mulch as well; it may be a bit messy on the top here, but leave it at the base of the soil, and it actually works as a really nice thermal layer. Help retain moisture on the drier parts of the months but also less soggy on wet months. And as it breaks down, it's a feed," Ish points out.

Mulching can be a real saviour during the colder months, as it can ensure your hardy perennial plants survive until the spring without needing much effort and attention.

Whilst there are benefits to not raking your leaves at all, there are also many advantages to collecting them and storing them to create nutrient-rich feeds.

"You can shred these up, leave them in a bag with holes in it, or even pop them in a wire cage, and let them break down into leaf mould and add it to your compost heap. This counts as brown material, so add it 50/50 to green material to create a nice organic compost," explains Ish.

"You can also break these down, soak them in water and create your own natural feed. So there are so many things you can do just with a pile of leaves that are sat on your garden floor," he says.

Don't make an autumn garden mistake and throw out your garden leaves; they're the easiest way to care for your garden this season without spending a single penny.

Leaving piles of leaves in your garden is also a great way to help wildlife and provide them with some much-needed shelter during the winter months.