Rake in the Free Mulch

Around this time of year a wonderful boon occurs.  I am awash in free mulch.  It’s beautiful, it breaks down into great compost, it contributes to good neighbor relations, and it gets me out of the house and into the sunshine for some great cool-weather exercise.  All I have to do is go out and rake it in.

My street is lined with Arizona Ash trees; the go-to tree of nearly every subdivision developed in the 1980’s.  And while they aren’t exactly the best choice for Central Texas, they make perfect mulch because the leaves are small, thin and break down easily.  They are also relatively tannin-free, unlike many oaks, and can be used in the landscape immediately without having to spend time rotting in a compost pile.

I stockpile leaves in several ways.  If they are already bagged, I just haul them to the backyard and line them up against the fence.  I use these throughout the year as needed to add bulk to the compost or as a quick cover-up for weed suppression.  Be sure to ask permission before you haul off someone’s leaves.  In Austin it is illegal to take other people’s “garbage” that has been set out on the street.  Asking permission has proved to be a great way to meet the neighbors.  Another bonus is that once they learn what I am doing, I have inspired others to utilize their leaf mulch in their own garden.

Leaves stockpiled next to berms.

The other way I store leaves is to “mulch in place”.  I have water run-off retention ditches that I dug around the perimeter of my yard.  I just fill these with leaves and let them soak up rainwater.  They will be broken down enough by spring for me to simply rake up onto my berms for summer mulching against the heat.

I also add leaves directly into the compost bin.  I bring home coffee grounds from work a few times a week and this nitrogen source makes quick work of anything I am composting.  I turn the piles about once a week to make sure they are properly aerated and add water if needed to keep the moisture level up.

Dig down below the root zone

The last way I store the leaves is by trenching in my vegetable gardens raised beds.  I have several beds that we made from discarded fence boards (another thing I scrounge from the neighbors.) Most vegetable plants have roots only in the top six inches of soil, so I excavate the soil and make sure to dig down past the root zone.

Then I layer about four inches of leaves in the bottom, then mix and cover back up with soil. 

Mix the soil and leaves

Cover with more soil.  It will settle quite a bit.

 Since the leaves are lower than the root zone, they can decompose slowly without harm to the bedding plants.  Plant decomposition is accomplished by soil microbes who consume nitrogen to reproduce, so sometimes adding “raw” material actually robs your plants.  Burying the leaves deep enough solves the problem plus  I have found that this method encourages earth worms to take up residence and deposit their castings.

So yes, if you drive down my street you will see my husband and I cheerfully raking leaves and hauling them to the back yard.  And ignore that woman laughing and jumping in the leaf piles.  She’s just mulching.