Oh my gosh, there are so many leaves. There has got to be something better to do with all of these
leaves than put them in bags and send them out to the dump. And as a matter of fact, there is
something better to do with all the leaves. We can create our very own leaf mold. So what is leaf
mold? Let me tell you about it. So as a gardener, it's our job, it's our responsibility to use what
Mother Nature provides to us. To use what she provides to us in a way that's cost-effective
environmentally friendly, but also helps create more beauty in our gardens. And leaf mold is one
of the best ways to condition our soil, to create a better soil structure, improve the moisture
retention, and regulate the heat in our soils so that microorganisms can grow, giving our roots a
happy place to grow. So what exactly is leaf mold and how do we make it? Well, leaf mold is essentially
leaf compost, but it differs slightly from traditional compost in the sense that we only
use fallen leaves. And because leaves have a much higher proportion of carbon to nitrogen
that you would typically find in a normal compost pile, it's actually broken down over the course of
one to two to three years by fungi in a rather cooling process, as opposed to traditional compost
which is broken down by bacteria in a very warm, often hot environment. So how
do we actually make it That right first and foremost we just got to rake it up and stack them high
Now once you have your nice pile of leaves there's a few things that you can do to ensure
that they break down even more quickly. First and foremost, it's essential to keep it moist
A moist leaf is going to be broken down much more quickly by that fungi
leading to our final product of leaf mold much more rapidly. Another thing that definitely helps
is if you're able to cut your leaves prior to piling them up. So if you do have a lawn crew
that comes out and mows your lawn, if you can have them mow it over first and then pile it up
that's definitely going to help your pile break down more quickly. Now in terms of piling
I have so many leaves there's no way that I can put it in into any sort of compost bin or
or things such as that but if you have a smaller yard with fewer leaves you can absolutely
use a compost bin. What I prefer to do is actually put a tarp on top of it that's going to help to
keep that moisture intact leading to a faster breaking down of the leaves
another way to help that process speed up is to use a variety of different leaves which of course is dependent on which trees you have growing at your home i have tons of beech trees and oak trees so I am of course piling them up together and for some reason having that combination helps them to break down more quickly Avoid using really thick evergreen foliage like
laurels or hollies because those leaves are much thicker and take much longer to break down
And as gardeners we are always preparing for many future seasons ahead of us and that's what makes
a great gardener. So it is no surprise that this process does take quite a bit of time. One year is
definitely the fastest that you can achieve the final product but oftentimes two or three years
depending on how well you are able to keep your piles moist or if you were able to cut them prior
to piling them up. So last year when I made this pile it was stacked about this high and over the
course of year, it has broken down to a pile about this size. So they get much, much smaller as you go
from one year to the next to the next. So this is essentially what the final product will look like
Now this is a pretty juvenile batch, only about one year old. As it ages even longer, it will
continue to break down and become even more dense and rich. So what do you do with your leaf mold
once you have it all finished? So once your leaf mold is ready to use, my favorite way to use it
is to use it as a top dressing or if you have sufficient leaf mold use it as a pure mulch over
the entirety of your beds but if you don't have enough to do that what you can do is use it as a
top dressing around the base of all of your plants extending as far as the drip line of your plants so the drip line is essentially wherever the foliage extends horizontally You go to that most exterior point and down vertically and that represents the
drip line of your plant. So here we have this beautiful hydrangea which is in its dormancy
period. And I will use this as a two inch top dressing around my hydrangea
And what's going to happen is over time is this leaf mold will naturally integrate into that
horrible clay soil that I have underneath here, and it's going to help to retain moisture in the
soil. It's going to regulate that temperature. It's going to improve the airflow in the soil
allowing for better root formation and microorganisms to grow and to thrive
So I hope this video about leaf mold has inspired you to do something different from the norm
of bagging up those leaves and sending them to the dump. The more time that we spend working out
in our gardens, the more we become attuned to mother nature and the bounties that she provides
us naturally and ways that we can use her abundance to improve the appearance and the
health of our gardens and of our plants. And if you did enjoy this video, don't forget to click
that little like button and consider subscribing to our channel. Every single week we're bringing
more plant-related content inspired by Mother Nature and God's divinity. Anyways, thank you
guys for joining me here on Plant Vibrations. I'll catch you real soon. Ciao