Using leaves from the County park
 

I've been scared away from using our municipal compost because of a probable herbicide contamination a few years back. This is horse country here, but the possible aminopyrilide contamination is something I don't even want to think about, so adding manure for a soil amendment is also out. I don't have enough trees to provide me with enough leaves for working into the soil this fall; I can go rake up what I need at the county park. They do use Roundup around the base of the trees occasionally, and this year they sprayed a couple of areas with a weed killer of some sort to kill off the dandelions.

Would the tree leaves be OK to use - would the trees have sucked up the weed killer such that the leaves might be "toxic" to my garden?

:o

I am not a scientist, but I would guess it would be highly unlikely that the tree leaves would be contaminated in any way. You should be able to use them without any problems.

I would compost them first. Depending on the type of tree, this could be a two year process - a year if you shred them first. Compost them alone, rather than in your "general" compost pile.

There have been many reports out there of tree damage caused by Roundup, young trees are most susceptible because of their thin bark, but it can enter at the base of any tree if sprayed on the root flares or suckers. [URL="http://www.ppdl.purdue.edu/PPDL/weeklypics/5-15-06.html"]Read here[/URL]
Monsanto says it won't enter through the roots because glyphosate is immobile in soil—how true that is I don't know.
There probably isn't enough contamination in the leaves of large trees to be overly concerned about, but the good news is bacteria are able to mitigate glyphosate, so composting like fortyonenorth recommends would be the safe way to go.

Most city dumps collect leaves from the streets and give them free or for very little. When I take a load of used carpet to the dump I get a pick up of leaves and catter it all over. The only thing I worry about is the road oil and cigerett butts!I have not had a problem yet! Should I worry?

Take care NOT to use the leaves from Walnut, Bitter Hickory, Sweetgum, and some others. They contain "JUGLONE", a chemical the tree produces. It will kill tomato plants and some other garden veggies.

Google "Walnut Wilt" or "Juglone" and get yourself informed before adding leaves to your tomato patch soil. Juglone takes 10-15 years to leave the soil once its in there.

Here's a couple links:

[URL]http://www.plantpath.ksu.edu/p.aspx?tabid=581[/URL]

[URL]http://www.tomatodirt.com/walnut-wilt.html[/URL]

Does that hold true to plant near small walnut trees! How about black walnut shells and the green shells should they be used in the compost or not? I have a chestnut tree and I get those leaves are those bad too? Thanks for the notice I will watch!

Bobberman, I strongly recommend you read the info at the links above. Everyone who raises tomatoes needs to know what can cause crops to fail.
Yes, any and all parts of walnut trees contain juglone. The fine roots the trees put out all underneath the drip line will saturate the soil with juglone. NEVER put any part of the trees that have juglone into your compost. Juglone DOES NOT break down in the heat of the composting process.

Leaves, nut shells, green outer shells, bark, walnut wood sawdust, root fibers, the soil under the walnut trees, and any moisture collected that has had contact with any of the above ALL WILL BE VERY BAD for your tomato patch.

I did read it and will get rid of all black walnut products! Thanks!