what you would be doign is creating a compost heap. CH do get hot inside, and large piles of leaves have been known to combust, under ideal condtions. you do not want to put anything on top of leaves liek this, once they decompose they will have only a fraction of their original volume. then your playset will end up very unstable.

I hate to see you spend money on materials, but yes, it would heat it up, I think. Don't let Starbucks discourage you---I don't think they will; they advertise about their "green-ness". I find it helps if I stand aside and wait until they ask if they can help me. Then I say, "I'm a gardener. I wonder if this is a good time to get some grounds." I say that, because often they have a trash can ready to be emptied. Warning: I never get glass or trash in my Starbucks grounds, but some people have. I don't know about mice. I've never really seen them in my piles, but they're definitely around---building straw nests in plant pots in my shed, and they filled a empty bee hive, stored in my old chicken house, with insulation. Water makes an inhospitable environment for them. I think people attempt to discourage them by keeping the pile damp. You can make nice compost using just the feedstock that your wife is comfortable with---or you could mention old_dirt's blue gills, which might make some fruit additions seem like a happy compromise. Pumpkins can generate a lot of heat, but squirrels like them, so they'd probably attract mice. I once read that yarrow was a compost accelerator. My compost pile is just where I put stuff that doesn't have to go to the landfill, so I have some piles that don't heat up, but they still produce compost in a year. My leaf piles take longer, but are well worth the wait. I really, really like to make compost, so I'm willing to be a little more eccentric than most people. Your kitchen sink gray water is a source of water that could be captured and put on your pile, if you don't mind slopping water through the house.

Laceyvail, agreed, plants dont have to be perfect. But don't forget you are responding to pictures now 10 days old. Bug volume and damage did increase, inspite of spraying, catching them manually, putting out yellow bowls with soapy water which catches several dozens of bugs daily. Now these beetles are mostly interested in the squash flowers. One flower alone can have 6 to 10 cuce beetles devouring it and mating. My question is: Do I let the bugs destroy the flowers, remove the flowers together with the bugs, or destroy parts of the flowers by trying to get the bugs out manually or spraying them? To top it off, Japanese beetles joined the cucumber beetles. I am not concerned about looks, but would really like to have some squash at the end. Any more advice of "ignoring it" or "not paying attention" is not useful. Would like to hear from people who actually dealt with these problems, and how specifically.

I agree leaves can be tilled in without first composting them but enough can't be tilled in at one time to make a great deal of difference in soil. The result of incorporating copious amounts of wood chips,leaves or other raw material in a single application is what leads to nutrients being tied up for an extended period. Annually tilling leaves and mulch into garden helps replace humus lost over previous year and slightly improve soil overall. The soil in my granddaughter's new yard need's a tremendous amount of improvement in tilth before sod is put down. Leaving clippings on yard when mowing serves similar to tilling leaves into a garden annually. At least that's what I've concluded over the years but I'm open to information and experience that might change my mind. I am and always will be a student.