Leaf mould.

Perhaps I will try and make some leaf mould again with this concoction. The last few years I've just dumped them on the nearest border which is very heavy clay. It hasn't made much difference though.

I wonder if I could make one of these with woven hazel hurdles instead? Chicken wire is very expensive. But airflow would probably be reduced.

 

It wouldn't last very long Jane, same fungus that eats the leaves would eat the hazel.

Have you got any bricks left over?

 

I see bin bags (suitable punctured) recommended every year. Not tried it, and I think its a faff - but perhaps "stuff leaves into bin bags, as you collect them, then tie and puncture and make a pile of bags behind the shed" is a good idea?

You don't need a very big "container" for leaves? Can you blag some chicken wire for it? or a 1-tonne-builders-bag perhaps ? (Very unsightly though ...)

 

Whatever you do, whatever way you do it.
Just do it, it's wonderful stuff, free and rewarding.
I always add other organic stuff to mine so it's a cross between compost and leaf mould.
I just cant get to much of it.

 

I doubt it was thick enough? Heaped and Rotted and then Applied you'll be then putting in an amount that seems reasonable for the job at hand. Whereas an inch or two across the whole bed may not contribute enough. Also, thinly layered like that the fungus responsible for converting Leaves to Leaf mould may not get going properly, and other composting organisms may get more of the action?

 

Collected all the leaves with the mower yesterday. I've got about 1.5 cubic meters at the moment, so hopefully I should get some decent leaf mould at he end of it. Still got some more to come of the father in law as well.

Rusty.

 

They are always quicker to compost down once broken up by a leaf 'sucker upper ' or lawn mower.
I seem to recall that Potassium Sulphate also speeds up the process and helps with valuable additives in the finished product ....

 

I cleared my leaf mould heap yesterday ready for the next round of leaves,lovely stuff it is.It's been left in a corner for around 18 months.I sieved a couple of handfuls to get a better look.OK so it's only leaf mould but it's scrumptious

 

What is leaf mould particularly good for?

 

It's good for just about anything in my opinion. I use it for sowing seeds, potting on, when planting all the numerous acid loving plants I have and despite having a small wood and many huge trees in my garden I never have enough leaf mould as I would like. I have just planted 50 Erythroniums and used about 6 bucket loads of leaf mould to give these sometimes tricky customers the best start I can. The biggest snag with leaf mould is the space you need (huge piles of leaves does not make huge quantities of leaf mould) and the time taken for them to beak down completely which dependant of types of leaves can take 3 years even with the black bag method or additives to improve the breakdown rate. Still despite the drawbacks I think the hassle of " making it " is well worth the effort. I haven't bought any type of peat or peat substitute for at least 15 years because I've used leaf mould instead.

 

As dear Geoffrey Smith used to say "Good enough to eat in a sandwich"

a-a