The Leaf Episode + Important Crop Storage Advice

Welcome to episode 27 of Growers Daily!
We cover: Composting Leaves, Mulching with leaves and storing food because why not.?!

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[kindhempco]

More surface area is the exact reason why waffles are better than pancakes

[Oktopia]

I use the fact that leaves stay as they are when dry to my advantage. In winter, I have plenty of access to fresh horse manure but not many sources for brown material. I collect leaves in spring when they already have a winter behind them. I put them in bags for the rest of the year and mix them into my bins as needed. Works a treat!

[maryhysong]

I'm in the desert so rarely have access to wood chips, leaves or grass clippings. But on the rare occasions they come my way they go in the chicken pens as part of the deep bedding. When mucked out and piled up they compost like crazy and the worms love it.

[DoctorMandible]

16:00 I mulch with fresh leaves and water them. They stay put. And then they get snowed on. Bottom gets broken down a bit. I rake it all into compost as brown matter in the spring. No tarp needed

[LegacyFarmandHomestead]

I'm putting leaves in my chicken coop where my 80 hens will absolutely shred them for me!

[ClubhouseGardens]

Thank you for steering clear of politics. Its good to have a break from it no matter anyone's political views. I appreciate you. 👌

[hawkspiritweaver]

I've been using leaves for years.. lots of maples in the yard. Chopping them up has sped things up drastically. Thanks again

[smflexner]

for anyone/everyone:
doing leaf compost in more of a large, to scale for needs 6-24 inch dugout pit will drastically speed up leaf composting process/let worms and microbes access surface area of biomass more easily. Less water, less turning, letting mother nature do the work. The biomass being closer to the water table in the soil will help the process happen faster on its own without need to water (unless in desert climate). Less dry spots over time when leaf composting in a pit! Hope it helps :) A spot underneath old big trees that is shaded during heat of the day is ideal.

[waypointfarm]

We loved to sprinkle shredded leaves over our garlic beds after they had sprouted up in late fall to create a weed barrier! They worked amazingly and lasted great till we harvested in July. (Near Chicago zone 5b)

[robertengstrom]

In my garden, I mulch with a leaf/straw chopped together mix. This avoids the matting of just leaves. A dose of compost tea with fish fertilizer on this mulch works well for me.

[jvin]

If you have grapes you want to expand your plants inexpensively: Pile up hardwood maple+oak leaves on the garden and churn some dirt into them to hasten breakdown in the fall. In the early spring, take cuttings from the newer "little finger diameter" vines with two buds, trim so you have flat top and angled bottom cut planting direction identifier, put them in a bucket of water as you collect. Then push them into the composting leaves, point side down, tight together like a mini fort fence. Later when they are rooting and putting leaves on you can choose to leave until fall to transplant or dig and move and keep watered. This only works for "native american" grapes (concorde, niagra) as the european wine grapes (cabernet, syrah, merlot) need grafted (american) rootstock to survive any amount of time nearly anywhere. This also works in large 5-15gal planters.

[smithyjohnathan]

I use a gas-powered shredder to break down the leaves even more after mowing. I generally layer them with fresh grass clippings and a thin layer of dirt in my compost bins. The mixture heats up to 150F within 3 days. I'm not a commercial grower but my 1/2 acre garden is on sand. 🙄

[guillermosanchez]

I just bought the living soil a week or so ago. A good read so far

[WesternMONo-TillGardening]

I have had luck with leaf lasagna, but I also collect leaves in leaf bins and just throw in some random veggie scraps here and there, which speeds up decomposition a fair amount. If I don't add water and/or nitrogen, they need to sit for 2-3 years to turn into leaf mold. Leaves have been a huge help with my heavy clay. Even just a layer of leaves as mulch for a year makes a surprising impact. As often as I can (based on how big my supply of leaf mold is), when I broadfork I sprinkle leaf mold into the holes the fork makes.

[alexpowell]

Super helpful thank you. I will now flail mow all of the leaves I put down and hope for lots of rain. And will plabt salad greens elsewhere.

[goldstandard]

My only "scientific" leaf story:
November 25 - December 25, 2023) Collecting leaves with a zero turn mower. Good mix of chopped, dry leaves and fresh grass clippings. Made a 50' row 5' high x 8' wide. Finished the fence surrounding the leaves to make a 40' x 50' chicken run/ future garden.
Let the landscape crew (25 laying hens) into the area February 01, 2024.
Harvested the leaf mulch during the month of June to till into my main garden 63' X 32'-6".
Tarped the "Main garden" till October, 01 where I planted fall crops.
While the main was under a silage tarp I put the landscape crew back into the original chicken run. Then I tilled the leaf mulch in and planted a field of black oil sunflowers. The chickens are back in there now (November 06 2024) with about 20% of the sunflowers knocked down.
The scientific part? Prior to covering the area with leaves, the ground was thinly growing Bermuda grass and digging holes required water soaking, digging bar, clear with a shovel, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat... When the girls were done with it, there was nothing green growing and the tiller made quick work of it down to 8" or so. Still hard underneath. Praying for progress next year after following a no-till, cover cropping and veggie scheme. Thanks Jessie. Under a microscope the leaf mulch had a heavy fungal presence compared to my usual compost leaning heavy bacteria. A soil sample taken while the sunflowers were in full bloom still had a heavy fungal presence and the busiest slide full of life I have witnessed to date. (Only been using a scope this year) For what it is worth...

[Freeland-Farm]

Potatoes and carrots can be left in the ground through the winter and harvested as you need them. Trick is to keep the ground from freezing. You know those leaves you were just talking about make a pretty good insulator.

[johnsix]

I mow the leaves into a bagger then till them under or mix with sawdust horse poop from stables for compost.
I do use them for a mulch where I don't want anything to grow.

[howmygardengrows]

I'm down for you saying absolutely nothing about the election unless there is a specific agricultural reason to, which I doubt. I like your channel for enjoying and breathing freely without all that drama. We're getting it from every other avenue anyway. ❤ ❤❤ Love your content!

[ThinkLittleFarm]

looking forward to hearing your perspective on what the next 4 years might look like for farmers, the environment, etc. Until then, Go Cats and happy composting.