Oak leaves

[wsommariva]

All of my browns are oak leaves. Millions of them. Is this a problem?

[gros michel]

Assuming you're talking about using them in a compost pile , NO they're not a problem at all. Count your blessings that you have them and make the best of them. A lot of people have the misconception that the oak leaves will make their soil more acidic etc. Assuming that you have a good balance of brown and green materials it's all good, just make your pile as varied in ingredients as you're able to. I " cheat" and add any left over organic fertilizers at the end of the season as well , also anything such as lime, greensand, etc that you may have will only be made more useful in the compost pile since the microbial action will make them further available to the plants when you use the compost.

[wsommariva]

Oops I posted in the wrong forum. Yes composting it is. I was also concerned about the acidity. Thank you. For years I was looking for compost and then a light goes off in my head. Make my own. I get a gallon of kitchen waste each week and I add it to the piles and cover with my stockpiled leaves. I got some good heat before the winter set in. Looking forward to a good summer yield.

[gumbo2176]

I just made a fresh pile using nine very large trash bags full of oak leaves. I added it to the truckload of stable waste I recently picked up from the local stables then added in all the yard and kitchen waste I had. Once the grass gets to needing regular cutting, I'll add the clippings to it. I also have 1 pile that is ready for use and 1 that is close.

I have a friend that takes all his oak leaves and places them in a plastic kids pool that is no longer good. He'll just let them sit there and turn them over occasionally to promote aeration and decomposition. In a few months, that stuff is like damp coffee grounds.

[gixxerific]

Try shredding them with a mower or something if you can. That will help them break down faster. They do take a long time to break down. Shredding them will give the microbes more area to do their thing.

[gumbo2176]

Try shredding them with a mower or something if you can. That will help them break down faster. They do take a long time to break down. Shredding them will give the microbes more area to do their thing.

I did forget to mention that. Those 9 large bags when shredded didn't amount to 1 full bag, but they were dense. The only things I don't use out of my garden in my compost is squash vines with borers in them and the thick okra stalks. Those things are so thick and woody I'd need a chipper to cut them up.

[wsommariva]

Thanks for all the tips. I actually mulch them all with a 8 hp shredder/mulcher. After nine years at this property, I finally figured out to make my own compost.

[toxcrusadr]

Sounds like a fine system you've got then!

[wsommariva]

Thank you, I hope so.

[toxcrusadr]

Hope you're standing down wind when you feed leaves through that monster! Leaf dust is not that good for the lungs, and some people are actually allergic to oak specifically.

[wsommariva]

Never had any problems with the mulcher and dust. I have a large bag that catches the output. Works great.

[toxcrusadr]

Woot!

[hendi_alex]

Same here, millions of oak leaves and little else. I import manure when I can easily get it. Also add kitchen vegetable scraps to the mix. During the spring I pull lots of aggressive weeds which add much needed greens to the pile. But in the end, it doesn't seem to matter what I put in, the plants always love the final product.

[gixxerific]

Same here, millions of oak leaves and little else. I import manure when I can easily get it. Also add kitchen vegetable scraps to the mix. During the spring I pull lots of aggressive weeds which add much needed greens to the pile. But in the end, it doesn't seem to matter what I put in, the plants always love the final product.

Said like a true gardener, simple and easy.

[Bobberman]

I gave my girlfriend a oak tree 15 years ago when it was 4 feet tall and now its a monster but beautiful! She had it trimed 4 years ago and it needs it again. I too have lots of oak leaves! I dug a hole about 12 feet in diameter and put all the leaves in the 2 foot hole and just throw a few shovels of dirt on top!
+++
I use the leaves all summer under the soil and as a mulch! I hate to see people burning leaves! I will get a picture of this beautiful tree with a trunk that has low 3 feet off the ground main branches 12 inches around! The tree is 40 feet high and gives off lots of leaves!