Prevent Leaves from Clogging My Drain

The other day I cleaned out the drain at the bottom of the stairway leading to my basement.  I reused a tray from the garden store when I purchased plants a few years ago.  There's a collection of them and plastic flower pots in my garage that were never discarded.

The water flowing down the steps wash the leaves into the drain.  But the tray prevents them from clogging it.
Now I clean away the leaves and am left with a clear drain.  There's no rush to do this because the tray keeps the leaves away.

I turn the tray upside down and place it over the drain.  It works, prevents puddles.