5 years of leaf mulch......
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 21 ธ.ค. 2024
- This is my 2024 update (5 years!) for how leaf mulch has improved my garden soil! Yes, 5 years later here we are......lots of black soil, lots of fertility, no more compaction, lots of soil life!
SOIL TESTING
Here is a link to the soil test company I used. If you want to test your own, you will get a 10% discount if you use the code GROWITBUILDIT at checkout.
rxsoil.com/
Note, the code is an affiliate code
I was very happy with the process, the info provided, and the service.
If you want to see my tabulated data, you can view that here at my website:
growitbuildit....
For past years Leaf Mulch Videos, here you go:
2020 - • Massive Soil Improveme...
2021 - • Autumn Leaf Mulch 2021...
2022 - • Autumn Leaf Mulch 2022...
2023 - • Leaf Mulch 2023 Update!
2024 - well, that is the video you are supposed to be watching now!
i am unashamed to say that your leaf mulch and composting videos live rent free in my head.
Thank you! That is quite the compliment
@@growitbuildit me too, has had a big impact on my gardening style (I collect tonne bags of leaves every year now and am not afraid to pile em up on the beds over winter, and not concerned about lack of nutrients).
@@jez-bird Nutrients are in the ground. You need to feed the system that does the chemical reactions to convert all that. Plant feed does not really exist. It's a symbiose with a fungus at the roots.
@@growitbuildit can you make an experiment were you put a completely non fertile soil in a bucket or box seperate from any fertile soil without any contact with the normal fertile soil and try and make that non fertile dry soil to become as fertile without adding additional fertile soil into it.
I am wondering if the mulch soil might mess with the test so i am thinking of weight the soil andulch and calculate how much organic biomass it would get from bad soil to good soil
@@RogerKeulenSoil web is more complicated than just the amazing mycorrhizal relationships. Nitrogen-fixing bacteria another big aspect. Some crops, like brassicas, don't make mycorrhizal relationships but they still grow better in a mulched garden. Leaves are just nutrients waiting to be made into plant-available form by the soil life, same as the way they chelate inorganic minerals in the soil. Mulch is just feed and shelter for a hugely diverse array of soil life, millions of species. An initial blanket is a good way to protect damaged soil, but so is just letting nature grow weeds there a while and chop\drop and mulch over them while planting competitive crops like winter squash and amaranth.
My garden (7bVA) began as hard compacted clay 12 years ago. I also use oak leaves to mulch. In the winter usually cover the garden with a layer of straw. This year, I planted cover crop of crimson clover, barley and oats in late Aug. I will chop and drop this n April. The idea is to leave the different layers root to decompose in place. This aerates as well as providing nutrients. My soil is rich and black like yours and my plot is highly productive. I have not done the measurements, but the leaf mulch was quick to rehab clay.
It's amazing how fast organic matter can work to improve compacted soil. You would think it would take decades, but it doesn't. Just a few years, and it transfers itself downwards - no tilling required.
Love the mixture of mulch\cover crops\chop&drop, that's the way to go imo :)
Well done. have been mulching for 20 years. I first run my leaves through a shredder which reduces its volume and provides more surface area for the decomp bacteria to access. I then add water, raking it in to the shredded leaves. 2 days later my mulch thermometer will read 120 degrees. After turning it a couple of times by the fall I have a pile of black gold ready to till into the garden. The Ph is right in the middle of where most plants like it and there is high nitrogen content.
Nice - sounds like you've got your self an excellent process!
@@growitbuildit I usually run about 150 barrels through my system per year. That keeps my wife's garden happy.
Leaf mould is a major discovery for me. It's benefits are amazing. Everyone should be talking about it. Your c9ntent is exactly what I like. Descriptive and logical
Thank you! I am 100% with you when it comes to leaves.
I live in Southern Ontario. I have been collecting leaves for several decades. I collect more than I need. This results in me dumping a long row of leaves mixed with some grass clippings along the back and side edges of our property. Over time plants have grown on that deepening soil. I have to water the grass clippings so they do not combust. I have one area which I turn once and rake. That is what goes into the three gardens I have. My rhubarb is so much better when I conditioned the sandy loam soil with the combined mulch. Love your videos.
It sounds like you have a great system going. And I know what you mean about collecting too much material! I've got excess amounts of compost this year that will probably go on my lawn.
@8:07 i’ve gotten so used to not weeding my garden. I really don’t wanna start.
Ok Im in!!!
Hahahaha - it's true
@@growitbuildit you’re not lying! Matted leaves have kept my garden beds so low maintenance.
This is the first video of yours I have seen. It was a TH-cam suggestion. I'm impressed with the content! I haven't seen a follow-up video like this before. It's very encouraging. Thank you for all your effort and time putting this information together and sharing it.
Thank you Bret - I appreciate it. And I'm glad you found the video helpful.
Excellent video and demonstration of the power of leaf mulch. One tidbit I might add is that nutrient availability (as measured by typical soil tests) is only part of the picture. Many nutrients require biological activity to become "plant available", and what you have done is create an absolute haven for biological activity! Its no wonder your garden plants are so happy.
Hi Matt- thank you for your feedback, and I agree. I figure that my soil will naturally balance itself out, but even still, with the amount of nutrients available there is no need for me to go crazy spreading compost. I have about a yard finished though.....but I have some other areas I can spread it that hasn't received much in the way of organic matter..
Leaf mulch is the best garden hack! It's so underutilized in the US, even though there are so many forested regions. Thank you so much for sharing your journey
100% - it is absolutely the easiest way to improve soil and suppress weeds!
Loved this video. This year, for the first time, I mulched all five of my raised beds with shredded hardwood leaves. Definitely noticed more earthworm activity, weeds were minuscule (almost non-existent) the mulch was FREE, etc. Also, water requirements were significantly less.
No brainer to continue this going forward.
100% I'm very glad to hear you had the same results as me.
I really enjoy seeing the progress of your experiment! I did leaf mulch for the first time last year because of your videos and tell everyone in my gardening circle to watch the videos. Instead of being a chore, leaf collecting is sooo satisfying now. Maybe one thing you can look into is finding heavier feeder plants to help use up those extra nutrients. I am no veggie expert but just as an example, dahlias are heavy feeders and can probably live well interplanted with your veggies here and there?
I think that could be a good idea. But I'm really going to try to remove as much as I can next year, modifying my squash strategy to do so. The roots of my plants go all over the place, so the plants should be drawing from all over.
I like that idea, planting flowers has many benefits
Regen farmer of 10+ years and I 100% agree with stopping the imported compost and continuing leaf mulch. As you mentioned mulch had far reaching benefits, frankly just keeping the worms around is worth it. Keep up the good work, love the detailed quantification of results.
Thank you. I make all of my compost, and it isn't coming from manure. But I guess I will just dial it back a bit. I typically make a couple yards each year.
@growitbuildit I'm not one to advocate for lawns but you could take it and brew it into compost tea and spray it over your lawn instead.
@@psychonot1398 I will for a portion of my lawn. It always dies during the hottest parts of summer. I figure I may be able to improve drainage there.
Grats! Can’t add too many leaves.
I used to live in high tax NJ suburbs and by the truckload the town collected leaves we all dumped at our curbs - unlimited free composted leaves at the recycling yard!! Deep sandy loam and tons (literally) of leaf compost made for one slammin’ garden! Many things I grew were ‘the best I ever tasted.’
That is AWESOME. Nobody would need to buy fertilizer, ever.
I just watched the last yesterday since I’m getting a lot of leaves falling in my yard and I wanted a refresher. Thanks Joe!
You are very welcome Herc! Glad you enjoyed it
I look forward to these year after year. It’s coming along so nicely.
Thank you - the progress has been amazing. I've already piled up about a foot of leaves in my garden as of this week.
I definitely want to hear an update next year! Leaf mulch has been amazing for me. It's so easy and free
You got it! I was planning on making this the 'final' official ending of this, but when I saw the soil test results I figured I should probably keep it going just to see how it varies year over year.
@@growitbuildit definitely keep going, its one of the only sources of info/evidence online about deep mulching with leaves, and defies all common "wisdom" about it! Thank you 🙏
I've been following this series since the beginning and it is SUCH a treat when I see this update every year. I can't wait to see how your soil develops as you refine your approach based on data.
Thank you! I'm glad you've been enjoying this series!
I love using leaf mulch in the garden. Impressive results. One thing we do is plant winter annual like rye or wheat then smash it down in early June ( we’re in zone 5) and plant tomatoes into the thick mulch. Then during the season can add more mulch with leaves. The living roots in the soil will put organic matter feet down into your soil.
I have never cover cropped. But I may have to give it a try sometime, as I like what you are saying.
Very good addition. The soil life IS the most important part of this whole stuff. The plant itself will regulate which and how much of any mineral they need, trough the help of the microbes in the soil, which themselves lives around the roots of the living plants.
1. There should always be a living plant in the soil.
2. Mulch as much as you can, feed the microbes, protect the soil from the sunlight and hold moisture back.
3. Don't till the soil, so the soillife can establish itself.
Thanks for the update Joe, I have great success using your info/wisdom for a few years now in an expanded version. We are in the temperate northwest and my wife has something growing year round so I do your leaf process in my composting area, then move it to the garden after it breaks down to a degree. I make 7 to 10 or so yards of compost every year using your methods. Only difference is I turn the piles with a tractor front end loader. All piles are on the ground. I mow and catch from 4 to 7 acres of grass here a year (mow every 2 weeks), add coffee grounds, and in the fall more leaves than I can even pick up. I have a coffee ground circuit we go on when we go out shopping, each time we gather 100 to 200 pounds. I leave one pile of leaves with no greens, I use it to add browns to piles if I need to latter. I am an old codger, I started out by turning by hand, but opted for the tractor by default. Thanks for your assistance. You are the best! By the way way my wife and I just got 2 Blue Heeler puppies a month ago. There favorite is frolicking in the piles, both leaves and green piles. When the piles go wormy the bears come in and dig through them for worms. My wife and I do not bring anything in from outside our place other than coffee grounds and our place has never been sprayed. So we have no need to worry about any of the sprays or other chemicals. I can send you a photo of our piles, green house and garden if you would like to see an expanded version of your awesome practical wisdom. Again, we have much appreciation for your no nonsense, practical advice!
Kind Regards,
Steve
Wow! You have quite the operations going. 7 to 10 yards of compost would definitely require a tractor, or it would be a huge part-time job in itself to turn by hand. I would love to see a picture. On my channel's "about" tab. there is a place where you can click to reveal an email address.
Normal soil will be renewed completly within a couple of years. Meaning "digested". Also try to grow some mushrooms in some old logs. Will feed the bacteria with sugars when the fungus dies.
I've loved using wood chips on paths and leaves for the beds for many years, works great. Did a cover crop experiment for a client and was super impressed by how quickly it opened up the soil and made it dark. I didn't do comparitive tests, but I spent a lot of time with my hands in soil made both ways and I gotta say the cover crop did better imo. But now we went back to mulching it because we removed the clover for plantings, it was the survivor after a couple years of letting the initial seed mix compete. Cover cropping is definitely a worthy part of the soil-building tool kit. Which goes first depends on whether your soil will grow any cover crop or not. I've heard daikons are great at opening hard soil. Purslane is a nice companion groundcover that helps open up the soil and gentles the force of the rain and provides habitat for all sorts of tiny critters. If a cover crop can grow, seems like the best first step. A thin layer of compost, seeds, cover with light layer of mulch. Chop\drop\mulch
egrowth annual cycle for a year or two and bam, amazing soil. Maybe start with a layer or three of cardboard if starting with intense weeds. I usually just control for light with chop\drop, only strong allies in my garden anyways, not looking to baby weak varieties so I'm not bothered by most weeds. There's an annoying thistle around here that drops pokey seeds I uproot on sight and poison ivy is scary, but most of them are not hard to supresswith chop\drop and mulch. Leaves are the easiest to move around and give great coverage, worms love them. Gardening is the best, I could ramble on for 20 pages, drifting through all sorts of topics within the world of gardening :)
I have never cover cropped. And I just sort of discovered leaf mulch by experiment/accident. If I were starting over, I would probably try annual rye followed by a leaf mulch. But I think the main take away is to get organic matter into the soil by whatever means you can.
@growitbuildit Yup, for sure. Canadian permaculture legacy sums it up with two main points. Maximize photosynthesis because those sugars arr a foundational fuel source for the soil food web. The other was never have bare soil, always cover it with mulch or growing plants. Gentles the force of the rain, shelters and feeds soil life which chelate nutrients into plant-available form. Chop\drop is such a great technique too, controlling the light is easy and effective and cycles the biomass nicely. But really, just putting leaves down and growing crops in your garden satisfies the natural cycle just fine :)
I always look forward to these videos, you have great looking soil!
Thank you! It has really turned into something nice.
Beautiful! I put 6" or 8" of free local leaves on my potato garden every fall and spring. I harvest 200 lbs of potatoes every fall. The leaves keep the moisture in the ground for the potatoes, keeps the weeds down, add nutrients. Huge, huge potatoes!!
200 lb? WOW!
@growitbuildit The nice old guy at the corner asked how I managed to grow such tall potato plants with huge potatoes...while everyone else grows with just bare soil...leaves, lots and lots of leaves is the answer. I put everything in my garden: grass, leaves, kitchen scraps, loads of manure when I can. So I can confirm your/mine method works!
GREAT VIDEO, THANKS FOR SHARING. ACTUALLY GOING OUT TO GET LEAFS NOW...THATS WHY I'M WATCHING YOUR VIDEO.... THANKS AGAIN.
Excellent - good luck! I hope you get tons of leaves!
I get happy just hearing your voice in your intro, no matter what youre talking about!! Today'svideo is super informative though. We're looking at switching our veggie and pollinator garden locations and ive been wondering how the respective plants will do as we treat each very differently. Thank you for this - will look at soil testing👍🏼
Thank you! I'm very happy you enjoy watching my videos.
Thank you for documenting your journey Joe! It’s so exciting to see how far simply collecting leaves and spreading them on your garden will take you. I’m excited to do this in my own garden now.
Thank you! You're going to love the results you get from leaf mulch. It is really transformative.
I collected a massive amount of leaves last year and it looks great already, im going to use it in a homemade potting mix as i have worm castings and homemade compost and whats left over will go on my beds 👍👌😁
Sounds like you've got a really good plan for the coming season
It would be interesting to see samples taken at different times of year. For example before planting crop and post harvest.
Thanks for the video, I came across your idea/ video a few years back and because of that I pick up bags of leaves around the neighborhood and use that for my garden beds.
Yeah - It is really interesting to do this type of analysis. I was happy by how consistent the 'old garden' was, and the new garden might be explained that when I initially built it, I had placed compost on half of it only to check any depth measurement.
Thank you for this! Doing my first leaf mulch now in Michigan. How deep can i pile shredded leaves on and still expect it to be ready by spring? I love living like this-in harmony and abundance with the land!
Hi - it won't be broken down by Spring, but you can plant right in it. I show this in past updates, but you basically pull the leaves back, plant your plant, then put them back but leave a 2" gap to the stem.
As far as thickness, I layer up to 12" of uncompacted leaves without issue. By spring they will be fairly compressed.
@@growitbuildit Awesome!! Thank you!
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Soil tests are very important. It's not a black art, when you use common scense. And most soils are horrible, thus most stuff will improve it. Leaves and wood just works the best for small area's. A compost bin just speeds up the process a bit. But if you leave your ground bare. It's better not to compost and leave the leaves on the ground. I have a garden with no empty spots. I just throw in some compost from the bin and cow manure pallets in spring.
Nice!
Thanks for the update, I’ve watched every one of these videos and already look forward to next years update.
Thank you - I'm glad you've been enjoying them
I've got alarm bells going off. I don't know about Pennsylvania, but here in Massachusetts, when I put a pile of leaves on the ground in the fall, by the time Spring comes and I'm ready to start planting - I stll have a pile of leaves on the ground. A layer of leaves at the end of the year is not a compost pile. When last year's shredded leaves are combined with grass clippings over the growing season, the pile will generally compost and break down over the entire season, and be ready for the NEXT year. That's TWO years for the SHREDDED leaves. A simple leaf pile will sit there for multiple years, gradually going black and being broken down by fungus and bacteria. I don't see how a layer of leaves on the surface can fully break down over a single winter - AND then get transported down into the existing soil to make a deeper topsoil layer. Remember - browen down leaves are not soil - it's just organic matter that will eventually be fully decomposted by bacteria and disappear. Top soil is organic matter PLUS organic matter. So where do those extra inches of topsoil come from?
The worm and nematods and other microorganisms keep mixing the green and brown. I am composting in a bucket and I added a tea spoon of near by forest soil and the worms plus coffee grounds and banana peels. I had to mix mine for first 6 months but once the worms took charge they would mix it as they went by eating.
Hi - nothing is broken down over winter. They are broken down over the following growing season. I suggest you go back and watch all my leaf mulch videos. The material does not pile up, but goes down into the soil. This is either happening from soil structure forming, worms, or other microbes eating and expelling the organic matter.
Great to see the numbers. It's easy to see the success, but having hard numbers is fun, too. And you're right about not needing to weed. I've never seen anything like how leaves stop the infiltration of unwanted plants, and I really don't have any explanation for it. Maybe it's the pH level? Dunno, but I love not having to scramble around pulling weeds!
The only problem I'm having now, is that the organic matter needs to build up significantly more to slow the drainage on my slope where I've tried to get some native plants established. The ground is so sandy and hydrophobic that water either runs through it, or down across the top, underneath the leaves. I've never seen anything like it, honestly, but it does explain why the Burford Holly I have there is performing so poorly compared to the hollies planted on the opposite side that has better soil.
I had hoped that adding some Panicum virgatum to the top of the slope would help as the roots worked their magic and burrowed down. Sadly, they appear to be stunted and didn't put out any inflorescences this year. I know you're supposed to baby the stuff for it's first year, but I didn't think I'd need to do daily waterings. I missed a few times as life got in the way, and the hot SC summer seems to have worked a number on the poor things. Even butterfly milkweed didn't do well in the bed, and it's supposed to love austere conditions!
Maybe next Spring. Maybe I should fork the sandy soil and get some of that leaf matter down deeper where it can help to hold moisture better. I'll play around and see what happens. The good news is that the bed looks fantastic even without anything growing in it. Neat and clean and tidy, with a nice mulch layer on top to create that uniform look folks can appreciate. This Autumn, I'll be expanding that bed and hope to get the entire hillside done similarly.
Hi - I think the weed prevention is just a physical thing. I'm pretty sure the seeds (that don't need sunlight) will germinate and just can't poke through the mat.
Improving drainage on a slope can be really tough. There are a few things I would try to help it.
The leaves are great at slowing the water down, so that should greatly help. But once you get your switchgrass going the problem should be solved. There are a couple other types that might help to, and they can establish pretty quick - Side Oats Grama and Purpletop. The seed is dirt cheap if you buy it by the ounce from Roundstone or Everwilde.
But it definitely sounds like have a unique situation on that slope.
@@growitbuildit Thanks for the ideas. I like to say that nobody has a "hell strip" like I've got a "hell strip"! Full sun, right next to some pavement, with sandy soil that is equal parts hydrophobic and fast-draining, and a slope to make sure the water gets away as fast as possible! 😁
The switch grass is still alive, just really hurting. Buying gallon pots was a good idea since they were strong and mature when they got stuck in last autumn, but this was their first full Southeastern summer all on their own and I really should have watered them more regularly.
My Penn Sedge didn't fair too well, either, but I hope this winter will help them recover.
Live and learn. I was really hoping that the tougher natives would do well and look like what you see all over the internet. Every site's different though, so I'm hopeful that their second year in the ground will give me better performance.
Next on the list of things to try will be Frog Fruit as a potential lawn substitute.....
@@threeriversforge1997 Some other possibilities....Blue Grama, Pink Muhly, or Buffalo Grass. The Blue Grama and Buffalo probably aren't native to you, but they grow pretty well in the badlands of South Dakota......
@@growitbuildit I'll see if they will tolerate a hot 8b hell strip....
I placed 4 inch shredded leaves on my beds along with 2 inches of horse manure last fall. Then applied diluted bokashi liquid over the leaves. It had all but disappeared the following winter. It amazes me that the soil and things that live in it can consume so much material. The soil is so much better for it. I will be doing just leaves this year. I think the bokashi boosts the fungal breakdown.
I think you might be right, as I've never had the leaves broken down by Spring. It takes them a full growing season to decompose.
Could spread compost every odd year or so on the lawn and every odd year or so on the garden to raise the lawn’s numbers and slow the accumulation in the garden. Then use the leaves as mulch/leaf mould. I haven’t spread compost on my lawn in years and think I will start again because I make an abundance.
I will probably do something like that going forward. I make a ton of compost each year, and like spreading it out before applying leaf mulch.
Thank you for sharing this video. So much good info.
You are very welcome - I'm very glad you found it helpful!
It's better if you mix grass (non seeding types) & leaves together in 3+ ft piles, as a heap decomposes hotter & faster than thin layers. As a bonus, if you can find them, add Christmas tree branches to your compost mix & you'll be very pleased with the results. Make sure to keep your compost material damp, but not soggy. It helps also--especially in hotter & drier climates.
I also use leaves for mulching around plants & in pots. It's very good to maintain soil moisture (i.e. reduces evaporation) & it reduces weed sprouts very well also.
Yes, fully agree
In my case the recipe is leaves and rabbit manure ;) Working wonderfully well.
I bet that would work really well - nice!
I have done similiar with my garden. But i have more manure and straw. Really changes the soil over the year, but it really takes quite large amounts.
100% - absolutely
I think I may have killed a lot of my growth in my indoor garden with lots of store bought compost. It was on special and I needed lots of material. I mixed it with other soil and organic material, but whatever I did was clearly not enough.
Thing is, that mistake has given me the experience of having to fix it. I've done it by slowly repotting all of my plants, composting what died, and adding a host of other materials to the system to balance it all out over the last year or so, and actually improve it beyond what I thought possible. I didn't throw any soil away, I just mixed any failures back through the compost system. In essence "diluting" the "problem soil".
Fixing it in the ground may need some effort but it's certainly achievable.
Good luck with your work.
Thank you - and good work on your end to, repairing your soil.
Greetings from France ! Thank you dor your work, i found it very interesting. I'd like to see how it evolves in the coming years, and how your vegetables react to this method. Do you rotate your crops or grow them in the same place every year? I have my garden in western france, in the Marais breton-vendéen, a coastal marshland with high pH, heavy clay/silt, no sand or bedrock, grey color soil... I have good results with piling up organic matter to create a fertile layer on the surface, and i'm considering to try deep leaf mulch for next year. Bonne continuation !
Hello! I actually don't rotate my crops. I find that most of the diseases/fungi that can effect them are ubiquitous, and will arrive no matter the location of the plant. It sounds like you have a tough situation with your garden over there. The deep leaf-mulching has worked wonders for me over the years. I bet it could help you too, and even lower the pH.
Very interesting video! Learned quite a bit. I need to test my soil too
Yes - I learned quite a bit doing so
Leaves are the best free resource 🙌 8:21 what tree are these from? I have the same one. Boy those seedlings get everywhere.
Hi - the tall one I'm pulling right at that instant looks to be a Hackberry. The others I believe are Norway Maple
@ ok that’s what I was thinking I have. Glad to confirm. Thanks.
Years ago I collected bags of leaves my neighbors threw away. Max number was 140. Austin, TX soil had lots of caliche. Leaf mulch worked magic, along with compost. At 77 in a retirement community, I can’t handle the heavy work though I can hire someone to spread Soil3, a wonderful product we can get in the Carolinas, Georgia, and now Alabama. Expensive, but it makes major improvements to the clay in upstate SC. I mulch everything with pine nuggets to prevent weeds epidemic in new gardens. I can’t do everything I could when I was younger, but I can do somethings. Improving the soil is the priority.
140? Wow - that's more than I've gotten. I think I cracked 100 a few times. But I fully agree, organic matter is like magic for improving soil.
This is really interesting and revealing! Thank you. Just wondering if you could extend your experiment next year to one patch where you put on compost and no leaf mulch?
I could try that.....I can do that where I grow my garlic.
I love what you are doing and sharing! I have a similar approach and have had great results in yield. I have one question. The last couple of years I have had struggles with pests, specifically cucumber beetles. Admittedly, I need to rotate my cucurbits a bit more. I have not planted them in the same exact area each year, but probably not far enough away from the previous years location. Regardless, I am wondering if by constantly providing leaf mulch, am I "harboring" beetle eggs over the winter and suffering the consequences during the growing season. Have you noticed any increase in pest activity in your garden since you have started this process?
Hi - I haven't noticed too much of an increase in pests....but since I started growing cabbages I did notice a lot of slugs. And I started using beer traps to counteract the slugs. For cucumber beetles, I generally don't have too much of a problem. Now, I have all manner of pests, and I have a lot of squash bugs that are likely hiding in the leaf mulch. The thing is, I don't want for food even with them attacking my plants. The same goes for cucumber beetles. Now, I do have a large number of predatory insects around, mostly wasps, dragon flies, robber flies, etc. This is because I have a large meadow near my veggie garden which has all manner of flower, that attracts just about everything.
Have you found the level of your soil going up at all? Charles Dowding does no dig beds, and plants directly into compost, very successfully. I think he grows his seeds in compost, then transfers into more compost. All that to say that I feel like if you kept on with your current method, you'd be fine. However I am neither a biologist, nor am I a soil scientist :). Feels like you've found a faster way to get to old growth forest soil.
Hi - the level of my soil is unchanged since I built my garden. The organic matter breaks down and goes deeper into my soil via natural processes. And yes, I believe you are correct in that this is a short-cut to really amazing soil.
What is your worm count in the soil? The little critters give organic nutrients a buffering that I don't quite understand but all my containers shrink in volume. They get topped of with leaf mold and mulch a few times a season and the worms are shockingly large for red worms. If it ain't broke keep using it.
I've never specifically 'counted' worms, but I've got loads of worms, pill bugs, and numerous other species that are in my soil. I was originally going to show a timelapse of the activity, and I filmed for it the day before, but then I noticed several birds hopping through my soil and eating the critters, so I showed that at the end...
Did you have any videos of this years tomatoes and peppers to see how this years leaves made them look.
Please continue making these videos its my yearly excitement for your updates!
You're interested in how the tomatoes looked, as in size and form? I can check and post some private clips. But this video has footage of this years peppers. The intro, and the 'how to smoke' section are from this year. I still have hot peppers growing too.
th-cam.com/video/kxcafFX2brE/w-d-xo.html
This is a brilliant video. It seems as though the plants are extracting excess nutrients from the atmosphere and storing them in the soil.
Thank you! Yes, I probably have some nitrogen fixing happening from the bacteria in my soil too.
@growitbuildit Do you ever spray your lawn with leaf mulch tea?
I never have
SO AWESOME man I'm starting one now in my new yard but wow that's amazinggggg🔥
You're going to LOVE LEAVES
I am quite happy that youtube suggested this video for me. I saw one of your previous ones, and I found it cool. This reminds me to restock on leaves. 3 years ago I got a lot from my neighbours, and put it in storage thinking I'll get some earth replacement. I didn't use everything right then, so out of 15 bags I still have like 5-6, but it was quite so nice not to have to buy all that earth. I am really planning to make some raised beds next spring, so I will probably store some more leaves in order to fill it quick and cheap.
Thank you for your work. Do you chop the leaves before mulching with it ? If so, how ? Do you have some leave shredder ?
Hi - I have mowed up my leaves before applying them as mulch one time. It didn't seem to add any benefits, so I have not done it since. The microbes and worms in your soil will do all the work for you - and the leaves are pretty much gone by October.
A winter cover crop like barley would help pull excess phosphorus out from your soil per KU extension
Thank you for the tip!
I appreciate the update - this multiyear project has been a pleasure to follow. My question this year is whether you're planning any nitrogen supplementation? Presumably added nitrogen usually comes from your compost, and you likely have a some extra bound up in soil biology. Also, the C/N ratio of leaves can vary a lot by species from, say, redbuds (more N) to oak (low N).
I'm curious if you see any nitrogen tie-up next year absent the compost. Or maybe use something like field peas to supplement N without adding more P/K?
Hi - when I plant seedlings out, I generally will add a handful of compost when backfilling. But in the first 3 years, I never top-dressed the entire garden, and those years had huge plants. But the main species of leaves I'm adding are sugar and silver maple, as that is what my neighbors are throwing away.
Can you please make a video on how to tell the difference between Euonymus americanus and Euonymus fortunei?
Perhaps someday. I would need to locate some plants out here as currently I do not grow it
How long after you put down the leaf mulch do wait until you plant? Can you plant seeds with the leaf mulch down?
Thank you so much for your informative videos, i appreciate your straightforward, non-gimmicky style.
Edit: Nevermind, I read your beginner's guide on your website. Exactly the info i needed, thanks!!!
No worries - glad you clicked through to the link. I have 4 other leaf mulch videos, and some of those do have detailed explanations of what you're asking. Happy gardening!
I have been capturing my leaves in a pallet structure my husband made. This will be the 4th year we have been circulating the mulch. The first two years I used all the leaves after one year by putting them back into my garden boxes. Last year was the first year I did not use all the 1 yr old leaves so I moved them to a side pallet structure for another year of decomposing. Those I used this year and so I rotated last years leaves to the small bin and am in the process of putting all the news leaves from this year into the big bin. It is amazing how much the worms love the soil below the leaves in my garden boxes. I already know in the spring of 2025 when I go to plant there will be a lot of healthy and happy worms. This is also the first year that two neighbors are brining over their mowed-over leaves and dumping them on the property line behind my house (it surpresses the weeds and the neighbor who owns that property has given permission.)
Nice - it really sounds like you've got a great system going
Nutrient burns usually come from synthetic fertilizers. But things like compost or worm castings for example cannot burn your plants even if you grow directly in them. But you could burn your plants with fresh chicken manure or lots of fresh urine or blood but that’s all I can think of.
Thank you for that - I appreciate it. I kind of was thinking the same thing, but good to hear it from someone else.
Lots of state universities have soil testing centers and they're reletiely inexpensive as well. Just might be a longer wait for results
Yeah - I wanted results quick.
I've been at my current home for eight years. The soil started as rocks and impermeable clay. The only thing I do to my soil is add a couple inches of compost each fall, made primarily from scavenged neighborhood leaf bags and my own pee. (I did dig it into the top six or eight inches of soil the first two years) I'll often top it off with shredded cardboard mulch to provide a bit of a barrier to retain moisture in our very hot summers. The only digging/tilling I have done since those first two years is from extracting root crops like potatoes and peanuts. My vegetables are almost always happy and healthy. It's not rocket surgery.
I agree - there is no need to overcomplicate soil building. The key thing is to get organic matter onto the soil, and let nature take it's course.
you could spread about 1/4" of compost on your lawn to help increase the organic matter in your lawn. another possibility is to mow leaves into your lawn.
Yes, that is very true. I have top dressed my lawn with compost in the past. It just seems to get consumed in record time! Plus, I have kids and a dog, so it all gets compacted again fairly quickly.
Excellent update. If you are interested in the nutrients in the compost you use vs leaf mulch your local ag extension office/State ag school probably has a compost test available. Could be interesting to compare and get a better idea where your nutrients are coming from.
I'm also surprised the test kit you used didn't measure Nitrogen, but maybe I missed it, or maybe they have a good reason not to. Probably don't want people over reacting and burning their gardens.
Hi - I may have to try that w/ the local ag extensions for composting. They are definitely cheaper, but cost a lot more. They didn't measure nitrogen since the amounts are fairly unstable. Because it transfers in soil so quickly, whatever they measured today would not be relevant by Spring.
Very interesting. I had to subscribe! I started leaf mulch myself last year. Do you add worms to yours?
Thank you! Regarding worms, I never add them to my leaf mulch. But they have no trouble finding their way there. "If you build it, they will come"
Carbon back into the soil. Nice work.
Thank you Jack
Great update about leaf mulch 🇳🇿🌱
Thank you! Glad you're enjoying them from down there.
I got some free cut-off wood from sawmills for firewood, and I strip the bark off that and add it to my garden, should help create some acidity in your soil
I could probably locate that around here. There are a number of people who sell lumber.
Also gardening is MUTCH more fun when you can dig with your fingers. Atleast i enjoy it. Took me 2 truck loads of compost to get the garden started. Now, i can use my own compost to keep it going.
100% agree!
Thanks nice info it will be very useful for me in future I'm a new Gardner
You are welcome, and good luck getting started!
I use leaves in my compost piles which works great but never as a direct mulch because they blow away.
If you place them in bags or a trash can and compress them a bit, they will hold together better and be less likely to blow away
Hello, this is the first time I ran across your videos, great job. Do you root till the leaves into the ground or just leave them to decompose on top. I just moved into a new home in Georgia, all I have in my back yard is clay. I’m wanting to do a garden next spring and have been composting the grass clippings, leaves and household garden waste as well as eggshells and coffee grinds. So again, do you root till the leaves in or just leave on top. Thankyou in advance!
Hi - I have never roto-tilled the leaves into my soil. I live in Pennsylvania, and it is quite rocky. So, to avoid damaging a rented or borrowed tiller I just experimented by piling them up on top of the soil, and voila - it worked great! The worms do their part getting the organic matter down there. It is almost like magic.
Yt just brought your video to my attention. Thanks intersting citizen science. You might find it interesting to check the effect of adding leaves on water infiltration and retention. Also do you have rain worms in your area?
I'm not sure how I could measure the infiltration/retention. For retention perhaps check base moisture levels before / after rains compared with bare soil or the lawn.
Regarding worms, yes, I have lots of them.
So when you add the mulch does it create a height difference, as in now the garden sits 2 inches above the lawn around it, or does the black soil form 2 inches deeper down each year. I am trying to understand how you got black soil 8 inches down if you didn't remove soil for the composted leaves to refill. Or does the leaf mulch not cause the garden bed to raise a little bit each year?
Hi - the bed does not raise at all. The color and consistency of the soil changes in depth. The garden soil is the same as the day I built it back in 2017. It's an incredible, almost magical transformation.
Surprise robin!! What a treat.
Yeah - that was a cool, unexpected close-up
Great job !
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it
I have a downward sloping yard and have trouble keeping the leaves on my lowest garden bed due to wind and rain run-off. Any suggestions on how to keep them anchored till they break down?
So the leaves I am getting have been bagged up. This compresses them/compacts them and makes it so they won't blow anywhere. I suspect that it would work for your slope, or at least help. So, either compress them in a trash can or trash bag for a day or so before spreading them. Then walk on them, if you can.
I Suggest to minimize the thickness of the leaf mulch ur adding to your old garden (at this point you only want to keep a small layer to protect the soil from direct sunlight / heavy rains while providing food for your soil life ) -> a soil rich with fungi will de-promote weeds - just dont dig and disturb it with machinery .
In my case when I started my garden I initially added compost , but then I only rely on mulch [ leaf mulch mainly ] - no fertilizer or anything , the soil is rich with earthworms and different small creatures that just chew the mulch or fallen plant matter & convert it to a material that enrich the soil and the plant eventually .
things like snails , they are present in my garden but they rarely damage my plants , simply because there is always mulch , flowers , and plant matter that keep falling on the soil . they eat it and convert it to poop rich with soil microbes. ( once you close the ecosystem circle , thats when your soil reaches its full potential )
finally , I always add covercrops in areas where I have nothing planted specially ones that make deep roots , it really builds soil at deeper levels ( letting those deep root decompose in place , is like feeding the deep soil , which you cant do by just adding mulch )
I'm only going to use leaf mulch on the old garden this year, not on the newer expansion. I actually will start getting leaves in later Sep to early October, as the leaf mulch layer has pretty much gone away.
Do you recommend using Virginia creeper leaves in mulch? I also have a large bay tree which is rapidly losing leaves. I live in North-East France if that makes a difference. Thank you for any advice.
Hi - I would use Virginia creeper leaves (Parthenocissus quinquefolia). I would use just about any leaf in my leaf mulch. I'm sorry to hear you have Virginia Creeper in France though, as that must be an invasive species over there.
@@growitbuilditthank you. It isn’t that invasive as I trim it back and it covers my tatty old wood store. At this time of year the leaves are beautiful.
@sibert1974 they are a gorgeous red. I wished they persisted longer.
Nice looking soil. Do you still need to fertilze the garden when you grow your plants? Or is watering the only thing needed?
I throw a handful of compost into the soil when transplanting seedlings, and that is it besides watering if needed.
Potassium or phosphorus one of them is on leaf so if u continue leaf mulch
u go on top of potas or phosphor
They all have trace amounts of both of those, so I'm adding them all the time. But, I am betting the compost added the most phosphorus.
Do you mow the leaves first or just dump them on the garden?
You can just dump them in the garden. But, it really helps if they've been put in a trash bag or trash can and compressed. That way they don't really blow around.
How is your nitrogen level in your gardens. I’m trying to beef up the nitrogen level in my Apple trees.
Hi - they actually didn't test the nitrogen. This is because it is quite transient in the soil, and any test done now wouldn't be relevant in Spring. If you have concerns about nitrogen, there are special tests for that, or the local extension office can do it too (but results take a while). Or, you could just fertilize with a general, all-purpose bone-meal in Spring.
I’m collecting those leaves!!
Get as many as you can!
I'm wondering what the nitrogen levels are. Thank You.
Hi - they didn't actually test them. And the reason they didn't was that nitrogen will move through the soil rather quickly, so any results now would be irrelevant in Spring.
This pretty well mirrors my experience in turning horrible clay that was concrete when dry and porridge when wet into a lovely dark soil where I couldn't turn a spading fork without finding earthworms munching away.
Exactly. Organic matter is the key to making soil great
Can I add courgette leaves covered in white powder to the compost heap ?
Hi - yes, you can. Try to make the pile at least 3-4' diameter, as then it will get hot. And you can hot compost just about everything
Hi, quick question.. will pine straw mixed in with leave harm anything ?
Hi Martin - that will not harm anything. Go right ahead and use it!
Do you notice having to water the garden less with the leaf mulch/ soil?
It definitely helps, but I still will run a sprinkler at night during drought.
I don’t know if you have tested any root growing vegetables but have things like Radish and carrot increased in size due to much looser texture of the soil now?
I've done beets, and they get quite large.
If I raked all my leaves into my flowerbed what should I expect come May?Which is the start of my growing season. Will all the leaves be decomposed? Can my plants push through the leaf mulch?
Depends on what kind of leaves! Oak leafs are slow to break down. I can go into areas of dense oak leaf mulch and still find whole leaves from last year. Whereas my hackberry leaves break down very very quickly.
Can you chop up the leaves with lawn mower to accelerate decomposition?
Hi - It depends how thick and possibly what kind, as Taylor said. I agree with here that oaks take the longest to break down. And if you take a hike in the woods in July/August, the only leaves on the ground you will see are oaks.
But in general, all the leaves you put out now will be a thick, compacted mat. As far as what can penetrate them, well, I haven't actually used leaves on my flower bed. But I can tell you that I have asparagus that pushes through the leaf mulch in my vegetable garden. Now, I'm putting 6-12" of leaves down in the fall that will compress to a 4" mat.
But each plant species is different, so you may need to test it. If you left your stalks up 6" or so you could make sure the perennials can push through in Spring. And it would also serve as a test to see if they can do it on their own.
I am dealing with sandy, highly alkaline soil (8.5 pH) here in the mountains of NW Wyoming that quickly dries out and then compacts like concrete, so I was a bit dismayed that your leaf mold raised the pH. I started adding sulfur this fall and had assumed that the cottonwood leaves would further increase the acidity. Hmm. Still planning to add the leaves and compost as the soil needs the humus and the leaves are free, but I'm wondering if what I'm doing is somewhat counterproductive. I'm certainly getting a lot more earthworms since I've been watering and amending the soil. Do you add any other fertilizer during the growing season?
Hi - i don't necessarily think the leaves are counter productive. You can buy one of those cheap pH meters too (I have one) and just take a sample that is sopping wet and check the pH. If your base soil is already 8.5, then I would wager that the composted leaves would be lower - somewhere in the 7's. So it probably isn't counterproductive from that standpoint. But you've got a tough situation out there if the base soil is in the 8's.
For fertilizer, the only thing I will do is add a handful of compost with backfill when I transplant seedlings. Nothing else. So all the nutrients/fertility has been at zero cost for me, just my time.
I probably wasn't too far from you this summer, as we vacationed in Yellowstone. We drove the Beartooth Highway and looped back to the park via Cody.
@@growitbuildit We're in the geological transition area off of Rt. 26. Beautiful country, but because of the thermal/volcanic history of the whole Yellowstone area the soil is seriously alkaline. I'm trying two things: 1) amend the soil naturally, and 2) live with it by identifying trees/plants that will tolerate a neutral to alkaline pH. I like the idea of building the soil over time and fertilizing just with compost. If it costs $10 to grow a tomato it's not worth the effort.
I have a pH tester. I thought it wasn't working because every sample I put in was dark green on the scale. Hoping to see improvement over time.
As for the pH of the leaves, last year I grew potatoes in containers filled with mostly leaves and a little potting soil. They did pretty well. This year I used potting mix and dirt and got almost nothing, so you are probably right about the lower pH. Anyway, hopeful. Thanks.
That is very interesting. I wonder if all the nutrients are completely available to your plants, or whether they are bound via the organic matter? Unlike adding synthetic, highly concentrated and bioavailable chemical nutrients..
I know that worms free up massive amounts of phosphorus in the soil, so there may be information from commercial outfits. If you had too much, your plants would be suffering. I postulate that the method of nutrient release would be different in your system vs fertiliser application.
It would be a good investigation for your local university. Your soil looks awesome. I might attach a photo of my dad’s leaf pile, built up over 30 years in a small macadamia orchard grown in solid gravel. Roleystone, Western Australia. Enjoyed your video very much! ❤
Thank you Cindy - I'm glad you enjoyed it. When it comes to how plants uptake the nutrients, and when mineralization occurs, it can get quite complicated. Add in the factors that it would likely require significantly more testing, and it becomes somewhat cost prohibitive.
I agree with your hypothesis that since the nutrients are naturally broken down, this will be much better form of phosphorus than a dumping of straight synthetically produced phosphorus. It is quite possible that the presence of humus and other compounds negate some of the ill-effects that can occur from over-fertilization.
I generally think that nature is a complex system, dependent on many factors and interactions. The phosphorus question alone shows this, as the graph I displayed showing what P will mineralize with (if at all) can change significantly with pH of the soil. Moreso we tend to look at many nature-related things as single variable problems, when often they are not.
Given your soil test results I'd hit the garden with gypsum (calcium sulfate) as that would increase your calcium levels and lower the pH (acidify the soil) as well as break up the soil more. Your tomatoes will appreciate it.
I may have to try that this spring. If nothing else, if I have it, I could mix a bit in when backfilling/transplanting tomatoes.
@@growitbuildit I'd spread/broadcast it in the spring to allow it to work well before transplanting. I'd figure about 5lbs per 100 square feet. If you have a Menards nearby, a 40 lb bag of 'Pelletized Gypsum' is about $6. Lowes has it also, for 3x as much for the same amount. 🙄
Leaves alone shouldn't have much NPK value, as trees pull back nutrients before the leaves drop off. It's likely mulch made from green plant matter that is adding P and K.
They are about 0.4% by weight on average for both P & K. I just figure the volume that I've put on has had the effect. As the plant size/yield has always been huge, even the first couple years when I didn't top-dress with compost.
Did you ever had issues with rats residing in your leaf piles ? I started composting recently and came to know that there was a rat family in the bottom of the pile which has discouraged me to continue with composting for next year. I do have to admit that I had not touched/turned the pile for about 4 months and that could be the reason why rats thought its safe place to stay.
I've never had rodent problems with leaf piles. But I could see where that could be a problem. Normally my leaves compact from 12" down to 4" by Dec/Jan. I supposed that if you had a large pile they would definitely want to move in.
Could you plant twice as many plants in the same size area and they still thrive with that amount of nutrients?
You could, but they get sooooo big now it just becomes an issue walking through the garden.
@@growitbuildit not the worst problem to have. 👍🏻
@@cafesandcampfires6456 Hahaha - true
Nice soil. What spade are you using?
For taking the samples? That would be a garden spade. They are available just about anywhere that sells digging tools. Here is a similar one (affiliate link) amzn.to/2QQFcwc
I found wood, logs,,etc to break down to good soil.
Logs/wood breaking down into soil is amazing.
@@growitbuildit i ran that expierament on over a thousand coffee trees.
For over a year. My belief is that micro elements are not represented enough hence you would get more robust set. That is the termites produce a steady stream of processed material with fugus then complete process.
Fugus I think of as one vast organisim. It actually has no end. So we feed it.
Instead feeding root we feed the fugus and fugas feed our plants.
There is more unknown then is known here,some plants may have special relationships to fugus.
Did the test give you a nitrogen number? I didn't see it, so I was curious.
Hi - they did not. I asked them about this, and the reason they don't test nitrogen is that it is too transient in the soil. By Spring, the value would have changed substantially.
I used to grind the leaves up with the mower spread them on top of the garden and cover them with black plastic December through March. First year I did that I had 2 feet of black soil and an earthworm convention.
Exactly!
Ok, I was wondering how to keep the leaves down in my garden, cause you know wind! Thank you for that. I will see what u can find