As the garden settles into its quieter season, I’m reminded how much life is still unfolding beneath our feet. The last of the Japanese maples are letting go of their color, ornamental grasses are beginning to soften, and the perennials we’ve admired since spring are easing into their winter rest. This is the time of year when the garden asks us to slow down, look closely, and trust its quieter rhythms. For nearly two decades I’ve followed a simple winter ritual in my own garden and in many of the landscapes we care for. It’s a practice rooted in ecology, but also in the kind of intuition that comes from walking the same paths season after season. You may have heard the phrase “leave the leaves” circulating in recent years. While it can sound like a trend, the heart of the idea is something gardeners have understood for generations: that a garden is not just a collection of plants, but a living system, full of creatures and cycles we rarely see. In recent conversations among gardeners and ecologists, there’s been a renewed appreciation for what happens when we let fallen leaves stay where they naturally accumulate. They become shelter for overwintering insects, protection for roots, and the first step in creating the rich, crumbly soil we love. Much of the research being shared today simply confirms what many of us have witnessed firsthand that gardens are healthier and more resilient when we’re thoughtful about how much we tidy and how much we gently leave alone.