[She'sinthegarden]

Hi
I have masses of oak and ash leaves in various stages of decomposition. I also need to find something cheap or free to add to the soil in my allotment because it's a bit claggy and I've got about a dozen soft fruit bushes waiting to go in. Is there benefit in using a mower/leaf blower (recently bought) to chomp up the leaves so I can use them straight away as a soil conditioner? Any other ideas please?

[TheSpartacat]

I've not used a mower/leaf blower so have no clue as to what effect it would have on the leaves (is it designed to chomp up leaves?) but shredding up compostable material does help it break down quicker. But i wouldnt think there'd be any benefit to using them straight away before they've decomposed

Any horse stables near where you are? They often have tonnes of manure  they are usually more than happy to get rid of, and its great stuff for improving soil.

Or you could try the no dig potato method on top of the soil, by growing your potatoes in straw? And as you rotate the potato patch, you'll be improving the soil on that patch no end!?
Someone posted this the other day:
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[Trillium]

If the leaves are at all damp, the equipment won't do a useful job of shredding the leaves. Oak leaves take the longest to decompose, 2-3 years, not sure about ash but being another hardwood, it's possible.

If your leaves are dry enough and you can manage to shred them, then it's worth adding them to the soil, but never as full sized leaves. I tried whole leaves one year and they all clumped together and didn't decompose for several years in the soil. They really need to be shredded. In fall we gather leaves by just running them over with our mower with the leaf bits going straight into a collector bag (saves oodles of time and labour) and spread them over the veg beds and top with manure and let them sit for winter. By spring they're mostly decomposed.

[bigben]

I would worry that uncomposted leaves would rob nitrogen from the soil if added in large amounts. You might be able to shred them with your blower and mulch your fruit once it is planted. Keep some to add in small amounts as "browns" in your compost. Bag up and leave some till next year for leaf mould.

[She'sinthegarden]

Thanks all
We had just enough finished garden compost to do a reasonable job. I think I'll just carry on mixing the leaves with grass clippings and adding them to the compost heap. My leaf mold bin is full to bursting.