Each fall one of the most celebrated and iconic natural displays is the changing colors of leaves. This beautiful visual show of natural color comes out in bright splashes of red, orange and yellow just before the leaves begin to fall for winter. What many don't know is that those falling leaves can actually be applied to your lawn or garden as powerful compost to help boost your plant growth!
The first step to making effective compost is to gather the leaves so they don't harm your lawn. Either use a rake or leaf-blower and gather all the leaves on your property into one area. Leaving the your fall leaves spread across your lawn can actually cause your grass and smaller plants to suffer root rot and promote the growth of dangerous molds. For this reason, it's important that you clear away fall leaves even if you aren't planning to compost them.
The second step in the composting process is to break down the leaves. The easiest way to do this is by using a shredder or chipper. If you don't have one of these available you can use a common lawnmower to shred the leaves. If you do choose to use a lawnmower be sure to attach a bag for collection. The breaking down of the leaves is an important process that facilitates the fast decay and natural breakdown of the leaves. The more finely shredded the leaves, the more efficiently they'll compost.
Composting leaves can take a great deal of time, sometimes up to two years! However once complete, you will have an exceptionally rich product that is perfect for use as a garden mulch. While you can compost leaves by themselves, you'll get very little final substance as leaves breakdown to very small quantities of mulch alone. The best way to get a healthy amount of product for your effort is to add other organic materials to your compost bin. Coffee grounds and egg shells are common favorites to be added into the compost. The most effective composting ingredients involve a mixture of carbon and nitrogen. Leaves are a fantastic source of natural carbon so adding in a rich source of nitrogen will ensure you get the most out of your compost. Uncooked vegetables, green plant clippings and wood or bark are good choices to add some healthy nitrogen to your compost bin.
It's important to maintain your compost by churning and mixing the compost every few months. This process allows fresh oxygen and air into the compost and helps facilitate the natural breakdown process of your compost materials. Diligent care and maintenance will produce a rich and thick compost that will last for many seasons and help your garden truly blossom! Once your compost is sufficiently broken down into a mulch-like consistency, it's time to lay the mulch to prepare your garden or lawn. When laying compost you want to be sure that the weight of the compost layer on the soil is no heavier than a plant sprout would be able to break through. Additionally, the texture of the laid compost should be fluffy and gentle. If your compost layer is thick and matted it will restrict the growth of your plants.
Composting your garden is a very important aspect of keeping it in great shape. However, providing adequate nutrition for the garden in the form of compost is not the only way to ensure your garden stays healthy and flourishing.
Consider the use of garden irrigation to provide constant and accurate supply of water in addition to your nutrient and compost usage. Precision irrigation such as drip irrigation can be an extremely effective way to get the most out of your garden and provide all of the vital elements necessary for great plant growth and development!
When growing a garden you should be diligent and caring in providing the adequate environment necessary for plants to flourish. This includes composting natural sources of nutrients for your plants to facilitate their growth and bolster their development. Additionally, providing drip irrigation or any form or powerful garden irrigation is key to getting the most out of your home garden. Water irrigation is an important part of the nutrient spreading process as well as providing adequate sources of water to your garden.
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