If they are chopped no problem. My asparagus pushes through whole oak leaves, but will have trouble with matted maple leaves. Locust, pine, and other small leaves are fine in any amount.

That 3 inches of shredded leaves were not digested indicates that the Soil Food Web is not active enough, although that can improve as more organic matter (those leaves) increases. Earthworms are an indication of an active Soil Food Web but are only a part of that. Then too how fine the leaves are shredded enters into how fast they get incorporated into the soil, the smaller the particles the faster they can be.
A depth of 6 inches now could be a good mulch for suppressing unwanted plants and could last well into next summer helping with soil moisture conservation, unwanted plant growth suppression, soil temperature control, and, of course, adding organic matter to the soil. Nothing wrong with that.

no, the leaves did not disappear because earthworms are not active in sunny, dry conditions. Fungi aren't either. Sunny beds will just digest things more slowly.

The leaves didn't disappear because most of the microbial and worm activity occurs under the soil surface. You will get some worms moving up into the leaf mulch layer but likely not enough to digest a decently thick layer. Winter rains will also help to break it down some but not at all unusual for there to be a significant amount still remaining after winter.

Not a real issue as leaves are still an excellent mulch and will eventually work their way down onto the soil profile.

There we go Glib! I'm in a severe drought area and we were either warm or freezing last winter!
Gardengal, HOPING for rain this winter!
Glib, chopped up pretty well.
Kimmsr, I've been gardening and composting for about 14 years now. I've been adding compost/leaves to the garden 2x per year for most of that time. I just mentioned that all the leaves didn't always get digested as others have stated. I've got plenty of worms! Maybe just too many leaves for them ! Nancy

Apparently the members of the Soil Food Web around here have not read the part of the book that sways they are not supposed to be digesting the above ground organic matter, the mulches. When I have plenty of leaves and get them shredded and put onto the planting beds I can, even on a warm November day, find Ants, Earthworms, Centipedes, Millipedes, Pill and Sow Bugs, and slugs in that mulch working away and in July I can find the same critters in what is left. Since they are there and working one can assume the bacteria and fungi are too.
I can mulch mow a lot of leaves into the grass, enough so the grass looks brown and in two to three weeks all evidence of those shredded leaves will be gone, moved into the soil by the Soil Food Web as the worm castings left behind indicate. This happens up here where December, January, February, and March are not very hospitable for the Soil Food Web to be working. Some think that if they dig in and find 2 or 3 earthworms per shovel full of soil they have a lot of them, but 10 per shovel full of soil is a lot and is an indication of a good working Soil Food Web, as is the presence of the other critters you can see.
If you are putting down stuff to kill off some of those members of the Soil Food Web you are also killing the ones you cannot see,

"If you are putting down stuff to kill off some of those members of the Soil Food Web you are also killing the ones you cannot see"

Or even the ones you can see, since from 2 articles I read on Google scholar, using sluggo or ferramol to get rid of slugs and snails also kills the worms.

From one of the 2 articles, even some mammals die from eating the pellets.

Although this has nothing to do with dead leaves and asparagus, and I apologize to Nancy, I just thought I would mention it because slugs and snails are a big downside of mulching.

first .... depth is determined AFTER it all has settled.... dont you think ... i used to put down 6 inches.. and by spring ... there would be only 2 to 3 inches ... here in z5 MI ... where the ground freezes solid... but it all depends on the particle size... we are guessing.. based on your description ...

my only concern.. would be creating an impervious mat ... causing lack of oxygen underneath.. and i am going to keep typing until i remeber the term ... if this happens... anaerobic.. lol ... nope.. but close.. keep typing... if this happens.. then you can ruin the plants below ...

in my zone 5 MI .. i can go REAL heavy.. if first.. i do it AFTER ground freeze .... and i INSURE ... that i start removing it.. in spring thaw ... so as to insure proper oxygen balance below... this was very important on plants.. that were basically foo foo ... like hybrid T roses .... burying the graft union... etc ...

but obviously ... this isnt going to be an issue in your z8 ... and i only offer you the story.. so when you visit various web sites.. you might key in.. on advice as to your specific area.. rather than getting confused as to why there are so many various suggestions ...

one way to solve it all ... is to insure it is not very deep.. directly over the plant itself... but more generous in surrounding areas ... i did that.. so come spring.. i could fluff the storage pile.. around the bed to achieve a nice coat of mulch.. for summer... and it was usually gone by july or august.. from all those things in and on the soil.. that they are discussing above ....

good luck

ken

ps: i swear the term is as i guessed.. but i dont have time to keep searching for it.. see link ...

Here is a link that might be useful: link -- look at the first blurb ... but i dont have time to review the article ...

OK. My back is recovering and I'll soon be able to move the leaves around to the compost bin and other beds.
Kimmsr, I would say I have 5-6 worms per shovelfull, and all those other guys mentioned!
I am also going to go to the neighbors who don't do anything to their lawn (including mow it!) and offer to mow it and take the clippings away (we don't have a lawn). I'm also going to go to the animal shelter and get bunny/guini pig poop for some lasagna composting.
Francoise- didn't know that about sluggo! I thought it was considered "organic" thinking it only killed the slugs and snails! I still have all the other critters, though! Nancy

Like any other poison Sluggo will kill many beneficial insects as well as the target ones. Simply because a poison is said to be an organic poison does not mean it will not also kill off beneficial insects, the manufacturers are just not required to tell you that.
When using any poison, organic or synthetic, due care is necessary.

I sometimes remove part or all of a heavy leaf mulch in the spring if I think it's too thick for whatever is happening in that bed.

I don't mulch during the summer with pure leaves so I can't speak to that, but when I mix last fall's dry leaves with green grass clippings for a summer mulch around vegetables, it's pretty much gone by fall and I'm seeing bare dirt. If you really need more organic matter and nutrients in your soil, you could try that as a mulch/sheet composting technique. But if you've been adding compost for that many years you probably are in maintenance mode and you don't have to worry too much whether your mulch decomposes completely. Does your garden grow well? Asparagus is a heavy feeder I think, so if your gus is doing well, don't worry, be happy. :-]

The gus grows great! I (almost) get tired of it by the time I let it fern out!
I'll be moving leaves around tomorrow. Thanks for all your advise! Nancy

Send that excess asparagus to us for proper disposal. We're sorry you get tired of it and we'd like to help. :-D

NOT gonna happen, Tox! LOL Nancy

Just trying to be of service. ;-]

Very grateful for your help ! ;) Nancy