year old leaf mould

[hawthorns]

i have a 75 litre bag of year old leaf mould and im not sure what to do with it. should i :

use it
leave it to rot down more
lay it on top of raised beds (then cover with plastic)
dig it in

[Capsid]

If it looks nicely rotted, then dig it in. Mine is nearly a year old but doesn't look ready yet, so I'll probably leave it until the spring to dig in.

[burnie]

It depends on the species of leaf as to how long they take to break down, putting it down as a mulch will let the worms finish the job off for you before the winter sets in.

[terrier]

I agree with the last post, use as mulch and let nature do the rest. If you're wondering if it's rotted yet, don't look at the top layer, dig in at least 6", if it's 12 months old it should be well on the way.

[Paulottie]

It can take a couple of years to rot really well and when crumbly makes a superb base for a pottiing compost.

For use as a mulch, a year old should be fine... best applied in spring...It is without doubt the best soil improver. If you've got space a chicken wire cage is a better scale/efficiency. I often use old ton builders sand bags.

[hawthorns]

just had a look in the bag. its full of worms but there a still fully formed leaves in there. i think ill wait until the spring to use it. im gonna make a wire cage for this autumns leaves so i can store more. think i made a school boy error last year by not running them thru the lawn mower first hence they will take longer to be ready.

[Wren]

I have been using the leaf mould stuff that i gathered last autumn these last two months. It's the best soil improver you will get your hands on even if its not completely broken down yet.
I have a small bed outside my kitchen window of baked hard , clay soil. When Augusts rain finally got it to a stage i could stick a fork in it, i dug 3 whole bags of my Autumn leaf mould into it, plus two spent grow bags added a handful of fish , blood an bone meal, and a week later i planted my herb plants in it.

I now have a wonderful herb garden under my kitchen window , the plants are flourishing and i now have worms in situ, where as before the soil was too baked and poor for anything other than the hardiest weeds. You will find lots of worms in your leaf mould so you get the extra bonus of adding the beneficial worms to your soil, as well as the leaf mould.

I still have lots of leaves that had not broken down fully yet, but it does not take long for the weather an the worms to do their thing so get it on there if you need it.

I am positively looking forward to the autumn fall this year, because i know it will be gold for my for my first Lottie that i am hoping to get in march if one become vacant by then

I go over the leaves with the lawn mower so they get all chopped up and collected in the grass box, then i empty them into black bin bags ( getting as much in as i can), Holding the top of the bag closed i stick my garden fork through it a few times to make lots of holes for the air to get in. I open the top of each bag and pour in half a watering can of water into each bag, then i tie up the top of the bag and stash them in a corner where they are out the way an can be forgotten about until next autumn . They might benefit from a turn over o the bags half way through the year to get a bit air into the leaves but they seem to do just fine cooking on their own.

I am a huge fan of leaf mould and it's just the best way to become self sufficient in your garden waste . Much better than trying to burn the stuff cos it smokes like hades and much better than taking it down the tip .

Wren

[hawthorns]

are there any veg that dont like leaf mould added to the soil.