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Autumn leaves as mulch?
As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the
following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
In article , Newbie
wrote: As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organic_material Don¹t let the reference to vitalism throw you. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goethe Still on gardening. http://www.gardening.cornell.edu/factsheets.html Such a simple question with myriad answers. Best answered by trial and error with extended family help if possible. Local agriculture folks may be of interest. Bottom line. Anything once alive is great for your soil and anything that passed through a digestive system is better. This of course is based on the premise you want to encourage life and leave the soil better than you found it for future life. Bottom Bottom line is Yes on using leaves as mulch for frost protection but you may have increased rodent damage . Bill -- Garden in shade zone 5 S Jersey USA |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
On 13/11/08 18:53, Newbie wrote:
As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? Y r u bothering to rake those leaves up? What harm they doing to u? Y not let em lay and rot as nature intended? Ed |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
Ed ex@directory wrote:
Newbie wrote: As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? Y r u bothering to rake those leaves up? �What harm they doing to u? �Y not let em lay and rot as nature intended? Y r u incapable of analytical thought, that perhaps there's a lawn under the trees, that the leaves would b best used as mulch in the perennial beds to protect new plantings rather than b left to kill the lawn. Obviously your response is indicative of someone too lazy to rake leaves... I bet you tell your mommy why do I have to clean my room, why can't I just leave my filthy clothes to rot on the floor. |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
When I lived in the midwest, I raked all leaves to the back of my yard
where there was partial shade and piled them up in a long ridge. In spring I planted impatiens in the leaves and had a long mound of impatiens flowering all summer. In my current yard, I don't have enough leaves to rake. I just let them lay where they fall and they get mowed in next spring. Janet |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
In article , Nobody wrote:
As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? An obvious "yes." Rake the leaves evenly into garden areas where they'll break down feeding microorganisms which in turn produce additional nutrients, all the while suppressing suppress weeds. It's even an attractive mulch and the decay of leaves is a most plesant smell. I have several trees but never enough leaves. This week I've been down the block cleaning leaves off sidewalks, putting them in big buckets, bringing them home to put on fallow areas of the gardens. Can't get enough of that wonderful stuff. -paghat the ratgirl -- visit my temperate gardening website: http://www.paghat.com visit my film reviews website: http://www.weirdwildrealm.com |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
On 11/13/2008 10:53 AM, Newbie wrote:
As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? Where I live, a real freeze happens maybe once in 15 years. The soil never freezes. In front of my house, I created a layer of leaves about 6 inches thick around my valley white oak (Quercus lobata) and then covered it with poultry mesh (chicken wire) anchored into the soil. Western oaks suffer when they don't have a thick leaf mulch. The mesh keeps the leaves from blowing away in our Santa Ana wind storms (when gusts of 60 mph are possible). Also in front, I leave most of the leaves on my front "lawn" alone. The lawn is actually a ground cover -- pink clover (Persicaria capitata). Today, I raked along the edges just to make it look a bit neater. The leaves I removed are now mulching part of my back yard. In back, the rose, west, and teardrop beds all have a good growth of ground covers, either the pink clover or cinquefoil (Potentilla neumanniana). These shade the soil, conserving moisture, keeping the soil cool in summer, and discouraging weeds. However, I do not plan to have any ground cover in the east and circular beds. There, I am accumulating leaf mulch to serve in place of ground covers. I place small branches that have fallen from my trees over the leaves to hold them in place. I will, of course, rake the back lawn when my evergreen ash (Fraxinus uhdei) drops its leaves (not being truly evergreen). Otherwise the leaves will be thick enough to smother the red fescue that serves as my lawn. Much of those leaves will also be used in my east and circular beds. The excess will go into my compost pile, which is actually more leafmold than compost. Only one bed in back has neither ground cover nor leaf mulch. My camellia bed is mulched with the output of my office shredder. The camellias seem to thrive with this mulch, which mats down and is not affected by winds. -- David E. Ross Climate: California Mediterranean Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19) Gardening pages at http://www.rossde.com/garden/ |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
paghat wrote:
In article , Nobody wrote: As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? An obvious "yes." Rake the leaves evenly into garden areas where they'll break down feeding microorganisms which in turn produce additional nutrients, all the while suppressing suppress weeds. It's even an attractive mulch and the decay of leaves is a most plesant smell. I have several trees but never enough leaves. This week I've been down the block cleaning leaves off sidewalks, putting them in big buckets, bringing them home to put on fallow areas of the gardens. Can't get enough of that wonderful stuff. -paghat the ratgirl Better yet, look for your neighbors who have vacuumed up their leaves with a lawn mower. You get a dual benefit here. The leaves get chopped up and mixed with some grass (green component for mulch to go with the brown leaves). I normally do not use a grass catcher. but let the mulch blade on my mower cut it up and allow it to fall on the lawn. However, I try to time my last cut of the year using the catcher to vacuum up the leaves. It is much more efficient than raking. I take the vacummed content to my three mulch piles to add to the treasure I have gleaned from my neighbors. Several villages around me actually pay waste collectors to take away their leaves for possible reuse at a compost facility. I wonder if anyone has calculated how much energy is being removed from the lawns of households with a fair amount of leaf fall. By the way, just piling whole leaves into a mound or into a compost bin without cutting them up really slows down the decomposition process. I used to do that and found the leaves sticking together, not allowing moisture and air ciculation to do their job. It took twice as long for those leaves to break down as compared to chopped up leaves. Sherwin |
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Autumn leaves as mulch?
On Nov 13, 1:53*pm, Newbie wrote:
As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? I live in the midwest as well. You shouldn't use your leaves as mulch because they tend to develop mold & you'll just have continuing problems on your hands. |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
On Nov 14, 4:05�pm, Jessica Mae wrote:
On Nov 13, 1:53�pm, Newbie wrote: As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? I live in the midwest as well. You shouldn't use your leaves as mulch because they tend to develop mold & you'll just have continuing problems on your hands. Nonsense, mold spores are in the ground (and everywhere) anyway. |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
In article
, Jessica Mae wrote: On Nov 13, 1:53*pm, Newbie wrote: As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? I live in the midwest as well. You shouldn't use your leaves as mulch because they tend to develop mold & you'll just have continuing problems on your hands. May Your Life Be Sweet And Simple 3:15 Blue Highway Midnight Storm Country 2 10/3/08 5:55 PM MPEG audio file 1998 Sings of wet leaves and more. Bill -- Garden in shade zone 5 S Jersey USA |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
"Jessica Mae" wrote in message ... An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? I live in the midwest as well. You shouldn't use your leaves as mulch because they tend to develop mold & you'll just have continuing problems on your hands. ALL dead plant material will develop mould unless you live in a very arid place, it's a key part of the way that natural recycling works regardless of being in the midwest or not. There may be some cases where some unwanted moulds are spread by some organic mulch but as a general rule this is not a problem. Ignore this advice, leaf litter is very suitable mulch and any risks do not outweigh the benefits. David |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
In article , Janet Conroy
wrote: I'm in the UK where most gardeners either gather up leaves and put them into black plastic bags with some holes in or into a kind of pen made with chicken wire. They are eventually put back onto the garden when they have broken down (one or two years here). I don't leave many leaves on borders, because smaller plants often rot underneath them and never any on lawns. I mulch with well-rotted compost. I used to do this and there's nothing better than a black crumbly leafmold to top soil, it's so rich and dark looking. It's not nutrient rich, but it encourages micro organisms of the best sorts. I'd put it in garbage bags making sure it was a little moist and had some whiteworms in it (whiteworms are a miniscule earthworth very common in leaflitter in autumn) and it would usually take two years to become pure black crumbly leafmold. Left out in the garden, though, the leaves break down into leafmold by spring, so now I don't bother to bag up leaves. -paghat the ratgirl -- visit my temperate gardening website: http://www.paghat.com visit my film reviews website: http://www.weirdwildrealm.com |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
In article
, Jessica Mae wrote: On Nov 13, 1:53=A0pm, Newbie wrote: As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? I live in the midwest as well. You shouldn't use your leaves as mulch because they tend to develop mold & you'll just have continuing problems on your hands. Been a while since I've heard anything that silly. Incorrect garden lore is worth collecting. Someone should write a book just about the dumb things people are convinced are true about their gardens. I'm sure we all have one of these dumb ideas stuck in our heads, so don't feel too bad, just get rid of it now that you know it's pure hog hoohoo. -paghat the ratgirl -- visit my temperate gardening website: http://www.paghat.com visit my film reviews website: http://www.weirdwildrealm.com |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
"Newbie" wrote in message
... As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? So far that I read in the responses visible to this news reader, only David E. Ross used the term mulch properly in among all their responses. Others were referring to compost, not mulch. They, or at least one of them, should have started a new thread if they wanted to talk about leaves used in compost. -- Dave If it looks like fish, smells like fish, its not a cantaloupe. |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
Leaves are fine as mulch if applied correctly. It would be great if you
could mix the leaves with composted wood chips. Mulching - http://www.treedictionary.com/DICT2003/M/mulch.html Troubles in the Rhizosphere http://www.treedictionary.com/DICT2003/shigo/RHIZO.html Sincerely, John A. Keslick, Jr. Consulting Tree Biologist www.treedictionary.com and http://home.ccil.org/~treeman Watch out for so-called tree experts who do not understand tree biology. Storms, fires, floods, earthquakes, tornado's, volcanic eruptions and other abiotic forces keep reminding humans that they are not the boss. "Newbie" wrote in message ... As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
BTW
If you are scared of a disease just let the leaves compost for one year and they will be fine. -- Sincerely, John A. Keslick, Jr. Consulting Tree Biologist www.treedictionary.com and http://home.ccil.org/~treeman Watch out for so-called tree experts who do not understand tree biology. Storms, fires, floods, earthquakes, tornado's, volcanic eruptions and other abiotic forces keep reminding humans that they are not the boss. "Newbie" wrote in message ... As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
"Dioclese" NONE wrote in message
m... "Newbie" wrote in message ... As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? So far that I read in the responses visible to this news reader, only David E. Ross used the term mulch properly in among all their responses. Others were referring to compost, not mulch. They, or at least one of them, should have started a new thread if they wanted to talk about leaves used in compost. Huh? Most of the responses were about mulching. |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
On 15/11/08 07:34, Ian Anderson wrote:
I don't live in the Midwest so I can't address your criticism, but Autumn leaves are welcome additions to my recycle bins in Australia. Do you add the leaves to your normal compost bin as part of the general mix of materials there or do you have a separate bin dedicated solely to leaves? Ed |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
On Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:53:26 -0600, Newbie wrote:
As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? Yes, I use leaves to protect roses but remove the leaves in early spring. Using leaves to protect new plants is a very good idea. Leaves should never be thrown (nor given) away. Make a compost pile. Leaf mold is very good. |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
sometime in the recent past Dioclese posted this:
"Newbie" wrote in message ... As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? So far that I read in the responses visible to this news reader, only David E. Ross used the term mulch properly in among all their responses. Others were referring to compost, not mulch. They, or at least one of them, should have started a new thread if they wanted to talk about leaves used in compost. Compost - –noun 1. a mixture of various decaying organic substances, as dead leaves or manure, used for fertilizing soil. 2. a composition; compound. –verb (used with object) 3. to use in compost; make compost of: to compost manure and kitchen scraps. 4. to apply compost to (soil). –verb (used without object) 5. to make compost: Shredded leaves will compost easily. Take your pick, but it's not always a verb. -- Wilson N44º39" W67º12" |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
"Wilson" wrote in message
... sometime in the recent past Dioclese posted this: "Newbie" wrote in message ... As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? So far that I read in the responses visible to this news reader, only David E. Ross used the term mulch properly in among all their responses. Others were referring to compost, not mulch. They, or at least one of them, should have started a new thread if they wanted to talk about leaves used in compost. Compost - –noun 1. a mixture of various decaying organic substances, as dead leaves or manure, used for fertilizing soil. 2. a composition; compound. –verb (used with object) 3. to use in compost; make compost of: to compost manure and kitchen scraps. 4. to apply compost to (soil). –verb (used without object) 5. to make compost: Shredded leaves will compost easily. Take your pick, but it's not always a verb. -- Wilson N44º39" W67º12" I see all the discusssion with one exception going to composting. Guess Sheldon forgot what mulch was... And to police those that do not use "mulch" in its strictest context here. Flaky is, as flaky does. -- Dave If it looks like fish, smells like fish, its not a cantaloupe. |
Autumn leaves as mulch?
On Fri, 14 Nov 2008 13:05:34 -0800 (PST), Jessica Mae
wrote: On Nov 13, 1:53*pm, Newbie wrote: As a new gardener in soon-to-freeze Midwest, I have noticed the following irony: We as well as our neighbors are raking bags upon bags of autumn leaves from the front and back yards and discarding them. At the same time we are buying mulch to protect newly planted perennials during the winter. An obvious question is, could we use those leaves as mulch? I get enough to make as thick a layer as needed? I live in the midwest as well. You shouldn't use your leaves as mulch because they tend to develop mold & you'll just have continuing problems on your hands. I process all my leaves (over 180 trees on my lot!) and take neighbors' leaves. Putting the leaves through my 8-HP chipper shredder, I put the ground-up leaves into a round wire bin. Grinding up the leaves reduces the volume 5X or more. After sitting in the bin for 2-3 weeks, the volume decreases again by one half. In spring I got a black leaf mold--very valuable organic material for anything you want to grow! It is just as valuable as compost, but not quite as common. Use it soon after 5-8 months, else it disappears. |
In front of my house, I created a layer of about 6 inches thick leaves white oak in my valley, and then cover it with poultry network (wire) anchored into the soil. West Lakes suffering when they do not have thick leaves covered. Mesh to keep leaves santa ana storm blowing away from us.
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