Leaf Thief - Page 2

rxkeith · November 12, 2009

2 more truck loads today. a little tired and sore, but i still have a few more loads in me.
the smell of the leaves reminds me of menthol or ben gay.....sorta.
as to what to do with the leaves. i just let them sit there over the winter. come spring time i till them in, and by summer most of them are gone. if the ground was drier i would do it now, but that probably isn't going to happen.
having spent 10 years in da U.P. i can say they do speak a little different in some areas. often times one might think they sounded canadian. its really something to hear some of the old finns talk. deer hunting is like a government holiday there. everyones hitting the woods. funny song by da yoopers, is the second week of deer camp.

keith

habitat_gardener · November 13, 2009

Not weird at all. The compost forum on gardenweb used to have long, long "can you top this" threads where people described their leaf-collecting forays. One person even outfitted a closed truck with a big hose, so he could drive through neighborhoods where people raked their leaves into the street and vacuum them up.

My aunt in NJ had huge beech trees in her yard and used to rake all her leaves to the edge of her dropoff every year. It took 3 years for them to turn into leaf mold, which she added to all her garden beds. Her soil was so soft that she could sink her arm in up to the elbow with no effort. She'd get cuttings everywhere she went, and the cuttings rooted easily in her soil.

People don't usually bag up leaves separately here, so I offered to rake leaves once and got a carful. The downside was that the yard had one pile of fresh cat poop, which I discovered after it'd gotten on my rake and shoes. (Ick.) I haven't collected leaves since then...

pete · November 13, 2009

I've thought of that vacuum deal but it seemed too aggressive for me--even thought I could put a magnetic business sign on my car and try to to look like an environmental outfit or something.

I am starting to calm down and can actually leave some of the bagged leaves alone, wife got mad when I made the 4 kids walk 1/2 mile home so I could put bags in their seats, I thought it would be good exercise but she said the 4 year old was too young to walk that far - just kidding, I love my kids more than leaves.

Maybe I should start a business composting leaves??
Glad to hear I'm not alone trying to make the best soil possible for my tomatoes and veggies.

Pete

garnetmoth · November 14, 2009

Hi Pete! Been busy here, I didnt get leaves, but I did get to a church pumpkin patch and got about 20 rotting big pumpkins.... I thought Id heard that Oak are a bit full of tannins and reduce the growth of some plants, but I cant remember for sure. Black Walnut are definitely allelopathic. (inhibiting growth of other things)

I was the brain surgeon who picked bags with holly in them a few years ago. ouch. I love the maples for their quick breaking down ability....

beeman · November 14, 2009

Something is discovered recently.
I have a pile of leaves, both mine and a neighbours, about 40 barrow loads full. In previous years they have taken for ever to rot down.
This year I ran them through a shredder, then while piling them up I sprinkled 'Corn Meal' across various layers, then wet them down. A vent pipe up the middle and they're steaming!

First time I've ever had a leaf pile steam. I will attempt to turn them in a few days, just to keep them hot. Perhaps 'Greens' are not so important after all?

pete · November 14, 2009

I use all kinds of leaves and yes oak and walnut do take a while to break down, I mix mine in layers of used coffee grounds - leaves - grounds- leaves etc.- very important to keep the pile moist. I stack the leaves on pallats with a fence floor to allow air to get to the bottom and stick a 2" pvc pipe with holes in the sides in th middle. Temps get to 135-140 F.
Usually I'll wait one- two years to use the final mixture. Oh yeah, I'm too lazy to turn them so they take a while.

Pete

piegirl · November 19, 2009

Almost cried Sunday afternoon - went to friend's house - every tree in the hood is an oak and it seemed everyone was out racking massive quanities of leaves into bags - probably a 100 bags just on one block and me with a little car! Brought one stuffed bag. Told her husband if wanted to load his truck up, to bring them on over. I can't believe not ONE person in this area was composting. Everything went to the landfill. Still sniffling over this! Unfortunately I wouldn't have the space to handle a huge load but honestly - COMPOST 'EM PEOPLE!

piegirl · November 19, 2009

Almost cried Sunday afternoon - went to friend's house - every tree in the hood is an oak and it seemed everyone was out racking massive quanities of leaves into bags - probably a 100 bags just on one block and me with a little car! Brought one stuffed bag. Told her husband if wanted to load his truck up, to bring them on over. I can't believe not ONE person in this area was composting. Everything went to the landfill. Still sniffling over this! Unfortunately I wouldn't have the space to handle a huge load but honestly - COMPOST 'EM PEOPLE!

pete · November 19, 2009

Just got back snagging leaves in the rain, at least it was warm-50F--.
Scored about 30 large bags on the 5X10 trailor.
Pile is at 135F, and growing to 8X8X4 in a wire pen. You would be amazed that 200-300 bags will eventually rot down to fit in the pen. Adding water and coffee grounds, really steams on a cold morning.

Pete

November 14, 2009	#21
pete Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: cincinnati Posts: 202	I use all kinds of leaves and yes oak and walnut do take a while to break down, I mix mine in layers of used coffee grounds - leaves - grounds- leaves etc.- very important to keep the pile moist. I stack the leaves on pallats with a fence floor to allow air to get to the bottom and stick a 2" pvc pipe with holes in the sides in th middle. Temps get to 135-140 F. Usually I'll wait one- two years to use the final mixture. Oh yeah, I'm too lazy to turn them so they take a while. Pete Last edited by pete; November 14, 2009 at 12:46 PM.

November 19, 2009	#24
pete Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: cincinnati Posts: 202	another load Just got back snagging leaves in the rain, at least it was warm-50F--. Scored about 30 large bags on the 5X10 trailor. Pile is at 135F, and growing to 8X8X4 in a wire pen. You would be amazed that 200-300 bags will eventually rot down to fit in the pen. Adding water and coffee grounds, really steams on a cold morning. Pete

November 12, 2009	#16
rxkeith Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Back in da U.P. Posts: 1,848	2 more truck loads today. a little tired and sore, but i still have a few more loads in me. the smell of the leaves reminds me of menthol or ben gay.....sorta. as to what to do with the leaves. i just let them sit there over the winter. come spring time i till them in, and by summer most of them are gone. if the ground was drier i would do it now, but that probably isn't going to happen. having spent 10 years in da U.P. i can say they do speak a little different in some areas. often times one might think they sounded canadian. its really something to hear some of the old finns talk. deer hunting is like a government holiday there. everyones hitting the woods. funny song by da yoopers, is the second week of deer camp. keith

November 13, 2009	#17
habitat_gardener Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: California Central Valley Posts: 2,543	Not weird at all. The compost forum on gardenweb used to have long, long "can you top this" threads where people described their leaf-collecting forays. One person even outfitted a closed truck with a big hose, so he could drive through neighborhoods where people raked their leaves into the street and vacuum them up. My aunt in NJ had huge beech trees in her yard and used to rake all her leaves to the edge of her dropoff every year. It took 3 years for them to turn into leaf mold, which she added to all her garden beds. Her soil was so soft that she could sink her arm in up to the elbow with no effort. She'd get cuttings everywhere she went, and the cuttings rooted easily in her soil. People don't usually bag up leaves separately here, so I offered to rake leaves once and got a carful. The downside was that the yard had one pile of fresh cat poop, which I discovered after it'd gotten on my rake and shoes. (Ick.) I haven't collected leaves since then...

November 14, 2009	#19
garnetmoth Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: cincinnati, oh Posts: 492	Hi Pete! Been busy here, I didnt get leaves, but I did get to a church pumpkin patch and got about 20 rotting big pumpkins.... I thought Id heard that Oak are a bit full of tannins and reduce the growth of some plants, but I cant remember for sure. Black Walnut are definitely allelopathic. (inhibiting growth of other things) I was the brain surgeon who picked bags with holly in them a few years ago. ouch. I love the maples for their quick breaking down ability....

November 14, 2009	#20
beeman Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Ontario, Canada Posts: 692	Something is discovered recently. I have a pile of leaves, both mine and a neighbours, about 40 barrow loads full. In previous years they have taken for ever to rot down. This year I ran them through a shredder, then while piling them up I sprinkled 'Corn Meal' across various layers, then wet them down. A vent pipe up the middle and they're steaming! First time I've ever had a leaf pile steam. I will attempt to turn them in a few days, just to keep them hot. Perhaps 'Greens' are not so important after all?

November 19, 2009	#22
piegirl Tomatovillian™ Honoree Join Date: May 2006 Location: Lincoln, NE Posts: 791	Almost cried Sunday afternoon - went to friend's house - every tree in the hood is an oak and it seemed everyone was out racking massive quanities of leaves into bags - probably a 100 bags just on one block and me with a little car! Brought one stuffed bag. Told her husband if wanted to load his truck up, to bring them on over. I can't believe not ONE person in this area was composting. Everything went to the landfill. Still sniffling over this! Unfortunately I wouldn't have the space to handle a huge load but honestly - COMPOST 'EM PEOPLE!