[garddwr]

Been busy today clearing leaves,borders and pots.
I finished building the leafmould bin yesterday and started filling it up today:






Anyone else have a leafmould bin/heap ?
Haven't done it before so I don't know what to expect ! Does anyone have any success with it ? I've seen them do it on Gardeners World but they have success with everything don't they ....

[poultrygeist]

Not yet. But having seen yours, I might well make one. Got some pallet wood and a bit of mesh spare.

And a fair few leaves to put in. How long do they take to rot down ?

Rob

[garddwr]

Well it said on Gardeners World this morning if you use a lawn mower or vacum thing to pick them up and keep it wet then you could use  it as a mulch by spring and use as fine potting compost by this time next year

[poultrygeist]

I thought they had to be kept dry  :?

Good job you told me. Don't know about chopping up though. The lawnmower doesn't pick up anything damp and I only have a lawn rake (manual version ).

Rob

[gingercharlie]

going to make one myself,as friend of mines a landscape maintenance contractor and has builders bags upon builders bags full of them each winter with having to collect them from is sites.

[sando8901]

I picked up loads of leaves two years ago and put them in bin bags with holes cut in the bottom and left them to it - top open to elements. Got 30l of really good stuff when I emptied them out a few months back, Put the unrotted stuff back in the bags and left as usual. I don't chop them up as I don't have the equipment for it

Its a slow process but its worth it.

[Celery]

I use the rotary mower on the highest setting for collecting them.

[peabody]

council guy bags them up and leaves (leafs) them at various places to be picked up later by council truck, i pick them up and compost ,had to tell council as the poor chap was nearlysacked for dossing on the job.

[mikem]

I went out early one Sunday morning last year and filled 6 builders bags full of leaves and then just piled them up in a large compost bin that I made out of an old fence.  It was about 6 feet high and some 4 feet square.  By today it had rotted down to about 2 feet high so I have filled 2 of the 330 litre large plastic compost bins and I'll leave it over winter. I guess that it will be ready by next year.  I'll be "popping out" next weekend and get another 6 builders bags full; not sure that the Council will like it as there is bound to be some Health & Safety issue but I work on the basis that it is easier to ask for forgiveness than permission!  

[compostqueen]

I've had my bins for yonks and they work really well.  You fill them up and they slump to nothing in about a year. I have a  two bay one made out of chicken wire and round poles.  My leaves have been in the bins for 12 months now and I need to start the process again with newly-fallen leaves so I've scraped the rotted leaves into black bin bags with a few holes punched in. I'm going to leave it to carry on rotting til it's turned into proper leafmould which I want to use for outdoor sowings for carrots etc.

[WirralWally]

Really good stuff.
Very cheap.
Plentiful supply at this time of the year.

I scoop dozens of bags of fallen leaves from the streets nearby.
I bag them up and put a couple of shovels of horse manure in each bag.
Few small holes in the bottom of the bags.
Leave for 6 months.

Hey Presto.
Wonderful mulch for April / May next year.

[gingercharlie]

thinking of covering my entire allotmemt with leaves around 2 inches deep until spring next year when i will rotovate the plot ,anyone tried this before

[Trillium]

I did one year and the wet leaves massed in a thick, impenetrable blanket which I couldn't rotovate at all or shove the spade through :evil:  Now I make sure I collect them when dry, run the lawnmower over the pile so they're smallish bits and toss all that into the garden and then rotovate. Works a treat as next spring the soil is soft and fluffy and full of worms finishing the job.
If I can't get the lawnmower to work (happens often) I put dry leaves in thin layers on the garden and rotovate, then add more leaves and rotovate again. But never ever will I try to work wet leaves again.

[woodburner]

The wind has collected most of the leaves from the trees around the playing field into a tucked away area by the entrance to the allotments, so first thing tomorrow, I'm going up with a grass rake, some posts and some wire mesh.

[Minty]

The council sweeper has been dropping a couple of loads a day off right next to my plot and I was wondering where to put some to rot down as I don't have any mesh or pallets at the minuit,didn't think of using black bags so I'll go and fill a few tomorrow.

Is it worth digging any into the beds we are preparing for next spring so they can rot down in the soil over winter?