Oh, how I envy you this precious 'gold'. You can apply it directly to soil. Ferns just love the stuff. I would keep it only for very important delicate plants that do not like too much fertilizer. I apply manure to my veggie patch, veggies are hungry creatures, leaf mould is too precious for them :-). Instead of happy gardening here is a Chinese proverb: let the leaves of a thousand trees cover your garden.

leaf mould? please enlighten one who doesn't understand.

what is it, how do you make it, what's its benefits, why does meggs call it "precious gold"?

Hi Paradisi,

Leaf mould is made of autumm leaves alone. It is a slow, cool rotting process which relies on fungal activity to break down the leaves. Normal compost is a faster, hot process and relies on bacterial breakdown.

Basically you just gather your leaves, put them in bags into which you poke a few holes and leave it for at least a year.

I personally don't think it's any more beneficial than any other compost. Like any other mulch, a nitrogen addition is needed. It is really fine if one wants to use it for potting purposes. Best of all it's FREE.

I'm sure others will want to add their opinions.

Cheers,
Dee.

I'm guessing that it could be some time since Paradisi has seen an autumn leaf? LOL

Dee,
The kind of decomposition you get in those bags is pretty well identical to what folk would experience in a good compost heap. There would probably be just as much Bacteria and heat. Put lawn clippings in a plastic bag and check the tempearture a day or so later and you will seee what I mean. But in a bag as you have described, it is tidier and possibly drier depending on how damp the leaves were when you put them in. A little additional water in the bag and the decomposition can be much faster.

Friends of mine use the bag method when weeding and have parts of their garden littered with black rubbish bags containing weeds in various states of decay. Weeds are supposed to "cook" in the heat absorbed from the sun and as a result the seeds are destroyed.

it's been a while sparaxis - my last garden with autumn leaves was over 10 years ago - abd it was one of those gardens with very few deciduous trees - and those leaves were raked up for the compost heap - - cos I just didn't know about leaf mould.

now I do - - thanks ;-)

Robert,

The subtle difference is putting them in the sun or sheltered spot. I agree in the sun it pretty much is the same thing as composting.

The point I was really trying to make was that both methods produce rotted green matter, so how different can the end product be? It really is a matter of using what you have on hand I think.

Cheers,
Dee.

How different can the end product be?
Leaf mould is produced by a slow process that does not involve high temperatures. All the beneficial organisms are retained in the final product.
Also, to break down properly they require contact with the ground and the organisms therin, so putting them in plastic bags does not result in the same end product.

Here is a link that might be useful: Leaf Mould

Dee,
Yes, I reckon the end product is about the same too. Bacteria is going to be on the leaves anyway. If you are raking them up you are bound to collect lots more bacteria. If they are weeds, the small amount of soil with the green matter will give you ample amounts of bacteria. The important ingredients are oxygen, nitrogen and water.

I think the only difference is, the bags tend to do it quicker and tidier.

the heat kills the bacteria. That's the difference. All the useful soil microorganisms will be cooked dead in the bags.

Sparaxis,

If there was no bacteria there would be almost no decomposition (some fungi do it). It is just that there are different sorts of bacteria. With leaf mould there tends to be higher amounts of fungal and mesophilic decomposition. As for high temperatures killing the useful organisms; heat is useful for hastening the breakdown of cellulose etc. in woodier weeds etc. It is part of decomposition but in a rubbish bag it is hastened by encouraging the higher temperature bacteria.

When it comes to leaf mould, maybe if you have patience and keep the bag out of the sun, you will get your slowly decomposed leaf mould. But the real slow stuff takes over a year if we wish to be a purist. It is beautiful stuff but is it really better?

All decomposition involves lots of microorganisms and they are all useful.

Here is a quote that explains things from the experts at Cornell University (you can read it on the net).

"Different communities of microorganisms predominate during the various composting phases. Initial decomposition is carried out by mesophilic microorganisms, which rapidly break down the soluble, readily degradable compounds. The heat they produce causes the compost temperature to rapidly rise.

As the temperature rises above about 40°C, the mesophilic microorganisms become less competitive and are replaced by others that are thermophilic, or heat-loving. At temperatures of 55°C and above, many microorganisms that are human or plant pathogens are destroyed. Because temperatures over about 65°C kill many forms of microbes and limit the rate of decomposition, compost managers use aeration and mixing to keep the temperature below this point.

During the thermophilic phase, high temperatures accelerate the breakdown of proteins, fats, and complex carboydrates like cellulose and hemicellulose, the major structural molecules in plants. As the supply of these high-energy compounds becomes exhausted, the compost temperature gradually decreases and mesophilic microorganisms once again take over for the final phase of "curing" or maturation of the remaining organic matter"

Hooly dooly!!!! Didn't know half that stuff, so thank you all for your expertise. My bags of "stuff" are the result of collected dry magnolia leaves that fall onto our driveway from a neighbour's tree, starting around about now. They are dry because I'm lazy about sweeping them up and/or I usually wait until they're all down before sweeping (as opposed to doing it every week as they continue to fall). The leaves are in plastic bags with a few holes in them, and the added water was rain when the tops came open. It is really black and squishy and smells GORGEOUS. So, just use it as I would compost?