Well - i'm not shredding any of my leaves...not even the oak leaves. There's plenty of time for them to decompose before next spring. It's just like taking a walk to me.....and everywhere is within walking distance if you've got the time.... :)

EG

Do you have a lawnmower? If so, does it have a bag?

Here is a link that might be useful: Annie's Kitchen Garden

just mow that baby!! also, don't worry about the time of the decompostion. get it all in the pile, cover it with the black plastic, put urine on it, of the kids if they don't take meds, and you guys if ya don't take meds, the ratio is 20 prt urine/ 80 water. it helps break it down faster, trust me on this. ya don't even have to let hubs know, LOL usually they get grossed out, now tell me, whaat is the difference between our urine and horse poo?? i mean really? besides solid and liquid. Hee Hee. the black will help it get the sunshine to bake it more. dont forget to get something to hold the ends down, you can even use clear, i just have the barrels that have holes. they work great!!! LOL cuz i can just turn the barrels, or kick them around when i'm all irritated. (shhhh, which is alot these days )
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_5iQNx4S_Q
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AqfmJKby234
the second one i really like alot, that's what i went off of when i do all of mine, even when i "chopped" the manuer!! ohhhhhhhh man, hubs was PISSED!! he went thru the roof!! ya, he wasn't happy, i didn't tell everything, LOL but he did get over it slowly. Hee Hee!! LOL

This is perfect timing Angela, lol. My mower won't start.

A barrel... hmmmm.... the lawnmower... hmmmm... (yes, it does have a bag and runs...)

I'm so sorry, Carolyn! Ummm.... I'd let you borrow mine, but only if you come by to pick it up and drop it back off. I'm kind of a homebody these days and don't get out much or I'd throw it in the back of the van and swing it by... LOL

Okay, back to the compost... I'm trying to be lazy and kind of skip the composting step altogether. I was really wanting to chop the stuff up real good and turn it into the current soil right away. I guess that's more like a green manure, right? There isn't any downfalls to doing it this way really, is there? I hear it can get hot in the summer when it's decomposing, but other than that...?

Blessings,
Angela

Angela I used the trench method for leaves for years. Just dig a trench the length of your garden and fill it with leaves. Dig the next trench beside it putting the soil from the second trench on top of the first one. Continue until you run out of leaves or garden space. If your soil is like mine, come spring you wonÂt find any of the leaves.

John

Here is a link that might be useful: Johns Journal

Angela,
In our climate I would not recommend black plastic as a cover for the compost. You will need every drop of moisture this Fall and Winter to help decompose that pile. Hopefully you will have some snow that would soak it good. Compost needs moisture to do its work; like a wrung out sponge.

Using the mower is good...it chops it up. When our Sears shredder was still working, I used it...now I just take the whole plant and put in my large compost bins. Might take longer but it does compost.

If you can get some goat/sheep manure, that would help in breaking it down. The pile needs to be hot to breakdown horse manure otherwise you might end up with weeds.

You might check with neighbors and get their bags of leaves. Leaves are great...I have composted these right in their bags with a few holes so they can breathe and get moisture...those bags can also help smoother out weeds/grass where you want new beds next year.

Good luck!
Peggy

Angela, I just shred with lawnmower, put them on top of the beds, sprinkle with high nitrogen fertilizer (I'm not strictly organic, so I use cheap lawn fertilizer) then just lightly incorporate it with a spading fork into the top layer of soil to give it good contact with the dirt.

Here is a link that might be useful: Annie's Kitchen Garden

all those sound good except for johns!! i think you must have lots of energy!! LOLi like the methods i'm learning here, especially for huge amounts!! Lord knows we have TONS of tree's. LOL ~Medo

Can I make a crazy comment about Granny's comment? Strictly speaking granny, you are completely organic. The term "organic" refers to carbon based compounds (http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=11780). I assure you that your soil contains these. Don't people get silly over this stuff? There was a guy on another blog I used to read all the time who would just go nuts if anyone suggested using chemicals until my husband pointed out to him that water is a chemical and did he have a waterless garden? Science is not the enemy.
I am thinking about using your method some, also John because I now am the proud owner of a zillion or so leaves!! Neighbors brought me four bags of starbucks grounds today, lol, I guess word is getting around.
Sorry for the hijack Angela, but I figured you'd forgive me. When can I drop by for the mower again? It's only 2100 miles, we're practically neighbors! It's just as well, you'll have plenty of time to think about what a nutty neighbor I am when we're in heaven.

Carolyn, I think the organic people would frown on the use of cheap high nitrogen lawn fertilizer *grin*

Really, in most cases I do try to stay "organic".

Here is a link that might be useful: Annie's Kitchen Garden

I am with you Granny. I think my gardening style is a combination of every style known to humanity. I will only use pesticides or herbicides as a last resort and at a greater dilution than recommended. After all we both lived through that DDT era (which is organic).

John

Here is a link that might be useful: Johns Journal

I got through the year without any pesticides whatsoever, but I did have to use Roundup on some stubborn Bermuda grass.

Here is a link that might be useful: Annie's Kitchen Garden

Oh, I love it! I have just enough info to be dangerous now! Thank you everyone for your awesome input.

Carolyn, you're always forgiven, so abuse my threads all you want! And, I loved your comments about us being neighbors, yep, and that's for eternity, too! That's the best kind of good neighbors to be!

John, great advice that I will use for my beds that aren't SFG *whispering in his ear that none of her beds are SFG quite yet officially, anyways*.

Peggy, great advice especially since we live so close. I know that what works for you will most likely work for me, and I had no idea about the horse manure, either. I am going to have to more seriously consider shopping around for that bunny rabbit sooner than I thought (and/or chickens, too, but I think I'm taking a whole lot on for such a new gardener already). I do like to procrastinate sometimes, too....

Blessings,
Angela

I may have to build a homemade shredder....there's a project that would be fun! Boy, the wheels are turning now!

EG

In the past, I just mowed the grass and leaves with the grass catcher and tossed them onto the compost pile. This year I replaced my old mower with a self-propelled mulching mower. Good decision! For composting this year, I either either picked up the leaves with the grass catcher or raked them, and then I ran over them a few times with the mulching setting before gathering them up with the grass catcher. This procedure finely shreds the leaves and greatly reduces the volume. I suspect they will compost much more rapidly this way.