I did leave bags filled for the winter not so much to compost, but to have carbons for the tumblers. First lesson I learned was sunlight eats bags! Bits of plastic everywhere. Now I cover with a tarp.

Lloyd

You got some great stuff there! A lot of us store leaves in bags over the winter to use for browns in the spring when grass clippings are plentiful. Since there is grass in yours already and it's heating up, I would be concerned the oxygen would be used up very quickly and the bags will turn anaerobic - not good. If it's cooking I'd build a pile out of it, on one of your dormant garden beds maybe. Or at least leave the bags open so they don't run out of air.

They would be better used as mulch then left in plastic bags.

I would also suggest poking some holes in the bags to allow moisture in/out and air in. Unless you really like horrible smells, that is, in which case, leaving the bags as is would be fine.

The year I kept a bunch of leaf bags intact through the winter, the plastic deteriorated & got brittle, & I spent hours the following spring picking the plastic out of the leaves itsy-bitsy piece by itsy-bitsy piece.

If I don't have a specific use for them, I just heap the leaves up & let nature do what nature does.

I store mine in heavy mil plastic (contractors' grade) and it holds up fine. I have used the same bags over and over for about five years. I don't leave them in the sunlight, though; I drag them into my woods. I use them for seaweed when they aren't holding leaves. When they aren't holding anything, I fold them up and store them in a bucket with holes in the bottom, which I keep in the back of my truck for just in case. If there's a lot of grass in the leaves, you'd be better off putting them in a pile or a bin.

Thanks for the heads up on the bags falling apart in the sun. I was going to be smart and bank my winter pile with bagged leaves on the north side. Help out with prairie winds. I think every one just saved me from "A PAIN" thanks.

Curt :-)

I use a shredder vac and store the shredded leaves in black bags over winter. I didn't have a problem with the bags disintegrating, except one I forgot about (it became buried by other leaves blowing around). I left the tops open and added coffee grinds and other greens and water. In the spring I had nice dressing for my roses and other beds. I like keeping it in bags because it makes is a bit easier to gather it and spread it around when the time comes.

OK So I went out and retarped the pile leaving the bags where they were. Now that pile is good to go for winter.

Curt :-)

I often store bags of leaves over the winter. I stock up in the fall at a nearby subdivision. I use the leaves to balance all the old produce I compost throughout the year. I get them from other people's yards, so some are shredded, some aren't, some have grass mixed in, but mostly they do not. The bags don't seem to shred in the sun unless I keep them for more than a year. Two falls ago I went a little berserk and stockpiled 3 truckloads of bags of other people's leaves, so last year I didn't scrounge any up. But the bags from two years ago sometimes came apart. Not much trouble with bag smells in the bags, as generally some weeds or something poked a hole in the bags.

Marcia

Agree that if there is a lot of green grass as a percent of the mix, you will get smelly grass soup in closed bags.

I use plastic bags of leaves to protect the perennials that I overwinter in pots. I group together the pots on the east or north side of the house, and then surround them with the bags of leaves, then cover the pots with more leaves. The leaves shelter the pots from cold winter winds and moderate the temperature of the soil in the pots.

I've never had a problem with the plastic disintegrating this way, but I intentionally select the north or east side of the house so there isn't much sun exposure, which minimizes fluctuation of temperatures (don't want the plants to thaw or break dormancy).