AUTUMN colour is all very well, but what's to be done with all those leaves once they have fallen?

They blanket our lawns, swamp small plants in the borders and clog up water features, quickly losing any novelty value they once held.

Traditionally I've collected leaves by hand, with a rake and a tub-trug, though when I gardened on a larger scale we used a formidable wheeled leaf blower to corral leaves into heaps before picking them up.

Hand collection is time-consuming and back-breaking, though it does have the advantage of being relatively gentle on plants and of giving lawns a mild scarifying while knocking over worm casts at the same time.

But big leaf blowers are too powerful for small gardens, and too expensive for the average householder to contemplate.

No need to despair, there is an alternative - the hand-held leaf vacuum.

Jobs for this week...

Sow peas and broad beans under cloches, for an early crop next year.

Many people feed the birds all year round now, but if you haven't been feeding them through the summer, then put out peanut and seed feeders now. Hang them near a window so you will have a good view of your feathered friends.

Clear greenhouses of spent crops of tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers, if you haven't already done so.

To find out more about Sue's mechanical leaf collector, see the Leisure section of this week's Westmorland Gazette.