Did a good rake and sweep of soggy decaying leaves for my father over Christmas. The inevitable robin appeared straight away to take advantage of the tasty morsels this exposed (hanging out by the broom in the photo above).
 I wheeled several heaped barrow loads down to the allotment to mulch one of the beds which I'd covered with cardboard several months ago to keep the invasive couch grass at bay. Cardboard is surprisingly long lasting as a cover but porous and completely biodegradable. Sheet mulching (sometimes called lasagna mulching) works on the basis that layers of card and mulch will merge with each other and into the soil whilst preventing weeds from developing.
 I've noticed that the soil on the allotments is quite depleted so I want to build up the fertility and structure over winter by adding organic matter.

 Postscript  Two robins came to join me just now while I was sweeping the decking of pine needles.  Robins are fiercely territorial so two together will be a breeding pair...

 I'm using the pine needles to mulch round the fruit bushes: