Quote:
Originally Posted by Stvrob
Keeping them moist is kinda a chore. The moisture doesnt penetrate them at all till you get a little fleck of mold starting to grow on the leaf. From that point, the waxy coating is breached and things go much more quickly. But that mold doesnt get started if they keep drying out.
I add them to my garden at a faster rate than I compost them. I just throw a bit of soil over the top with a garden spade to keep them from blowing away and just call it mulch instead of compost.
|
That will work for sure. Here is another trick I actually am doing right now with my neighbors oak leaves. He had a pile that went through the whole winter and they look as fresh as the day they fell. So I "offered" to "help" him out yesterday. I have two of those large garbage cans. But I only need one for trash pick-up day. The spare I use for those sorts of leaves. Here is how. I take my bagging mower to the leaves. That chops and bags them. I put them in the garbage can. Then I "offered" to "help" him mow too. That gives me absolutely fresh grass clippings. (very extra tender green and hot in spring) I pile them on top of the brown oak leaves in the garbage can. Then I close the lid and let it ferment anaerobically. It actually smells like alcohol within one day.
That filters down through the brown oak leaves and prepares them. (the alcohol actually removes the waxy coat from pine needles, oak leaves or anything like that and soaks them in moisture) I just checked this evening and sure enough, smells like a brewery and has dropped down by 1/2 already. In about a week or so I will empty the trash can into a wire compost bin and do a hot aerobic compost in the normal way.
It's a little trickier than the normal composting I do, but it can get stubborn things prepared so they "kick off" properly in my main compost piles. Just an idea you might try.
PS. No need to do this with maple leaves or other types of leaves, but the waxy hard to compost types it helps.