Lovely leaves make mulch
Each day there are more and more leaves dropping onto my lawn, blocking out the already waning sunlight.
I view leaves as fine if they fall onto borders with bare patches, but my lawn is new this year, and needs to be looked after.
While raking it up seems tedious when you have to keep doing it, at least you can get a long-term reward for your efforts – leaf mould in about a year's time.
When I started gardening a few years ago, I hadn't heard of leaf mould. I thought everything dead went on the compost heap.
But leaves rot differently to other garden waste, and can be put in a bin with a lid or a couple of black bags, stuck in a corner and forgotten about. Then 12 months later you should find crumbly, dark brown stuff .
If you have enough room, make a leaf pile from chicken wire pulled tight around four upright posts.
A lid will stop them blowing away. Simply fill the wire 'box', turning occasionally, and you'll eventually get crumbly, almost compost-like leaf mould, which is an excellent soil conditioner, potting mix or mulch, especially for a shady garden like mine where the plants are woodlandy in origin and expect some leaf fall anyway.
If space is limited, invest in some heavy duty bin bags and fill them to the brim with damp leaves, remembering that as the leaves break down, the volume will decrease substantially.
You can also add lawn clippings, which will help speed the process.
The bags need a little aeration for the process to work well, so pierce the sides in a few places.
Moisten the mix lightly with a dribble of water (not too much) then tie the bags and store somewhere dry. The longer the bags are left, the better the end result.
But beware – the first year I tried with bin bags, I didn't put enough leaves in, and added too much water. The end result was a bag of stinky slime.
The third method is the bin method. Pretty much the same as the bin bag method only you need to punch a couple of holes in the bottom and have a secure lid.
I use the same bin that holds potatoes in summer. You don't have to fill it, you can top it up as you collect more leaves, and you get crumbly, sweet-smelling leaf mould in about a year. Yum!
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Weather for Northampton
Thursday 24 May 2012
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