Leaf mould bins build

It's that time of year again, when the leaves are ( finally!) falling and are there to be gathered up and used to make leaf mould - that wonderful, rich, dark, crumbly soil enhancer :)

I have been sent a new ( to me ) sort of leaf mould bin by The Recycle Works - normally I use their wooden compost bins and excellent leaf mould they make too  - you can read how I do it in this post 

The new leaf mould bin I was sent to try out is a variation on their usual compost bin modules - this model fits on the end of an existing bin or you can get a stand alone version with a few more boards and parts.

This leaf mould bin is The Recycle Works usual easy to put together wooden posts and boards, but instead of each side being five boards high there are only two of the boards which are then held apart by vertically placed plastic strips

The bottom board ( the thicker one above)  is slotted into the post as usual then the plastic strip is slid down the post until it sits on top of the bottom board

then the top board is added - held in place at the top of the post by the plastic strip, as in the photo below. Chickens are not supplied with the kit!

A roll of plastic wire mesh (also supplied) is added inside, to hold the leaves in place. The leaves will compost down as the air and rain can get to them easily

 This is not fixed into place yet by the (provided) tiewraps, but you get the general idea.

I think this is a good product, it is a good idea and easy to assemble and as usual from The Recycle Works is of good quality.
 
I am, however going to disassemble it from where we put it today in the row of compost bins and re errect it as a stand alone leaf mould bin. I am doing this so I can compare this new bin with my usual method of making leaf mould - you all know how I love doing composting experiments :) I have enough spare parts to create a stand alone module.

You can buy these leaf mould bins from The Recycle Works as single, stand alone modules ( four posts, 8 boards, 8 plastic spacers and extra tiewraps) or to add on to an existing one of their compost bins.

Building some new compost and leaf mould bins part 1

It's time to make more compost! So I took delivery of some more modular compost bins from The Recycle Works

This is my composting area, the yellow builders bags are full of finished compost and leaf mould, dug out from the compost bins

 

There were six wooden compost bins in this empty space before, but some of the wooden planks had rotted away ( well, they had been buried in decomposing material for more than eight years!) and the ground had become uneven due to tree roots and needed levelling.

So we dismantled the old bins and dug out the base. Quite a lot of the older posts and planks can be reused but the inner posts and planks will be replaced by new ones, as they are the ones which get the most contact with decompostition :) The bricks are there to put the compost bin posts on.

Because we have a bindweed problem everywhere we always put down geotextile under the bins - it does NOT affect the compost process at all

First couple of new The Recycle Works wooden compost bins in place, they simply add on to the old ones :)

How to make Leaf Mould

Autumn brings a carpet of leaves, which take a long time to compost. I have been recently making Leaf Mould (or Mold) from all the fallen leaves in our wood and garden. I used the ride on mower for some of the leaf gathering as we have SO many leaves to collect! I do, however, also gather some the traditional way, with a rake!







Why do I want to make leaf mould? Why do I not just leave the leaves where they fall?
Well, I DO leave the leaves in the wood where they can compost down as nature intended, and provide a wonderful home for all manner of insects, worms and small mammals as well as a rich and varied eco system of fungi and microbes.

BUT the leaves which fall on the grass will simply exclude light and damage the grass AND I want them to make a valuable resource in an organic gardener's repertoire of tricks, a fine, brown compost-like material, which can be used in the same way as compost.

It is very easy to make leaf mould. The best method is to gather large quantities of leaves and put them into a container and leave them to rot down. A wire enclosure or a black sack (with some holes for aeration) will work fine for this. It is best to collect the leaves when they are wet as this will help them to break down quicker, if they are dry, water them a little as you place them into the container.



Please note I use compost bins simply because I have some available!



Compostman squashing down the leaves so as to get more in the bin!



All that big pile of leaves gone into 2 compost bins.



Covered over and ready to leave for a year or so. These two bins will produce a little less than 1 bin of finished leaf mould compost


Leaves will take a year or two to decompose into a usable form. To speed up this process I mix the leaves with some grass cuttings (another reason to use the ride on mower!), this gives me a much richer leaf mould in about a year , due to the leaves being chopped up a bit and the grass clippings adding heat to the composting process.



The finished leaf mould can be used in a variety of ways, it can be used as a weed-suppressing and moisture-retaining mulch, dug in, spread over a lawn, sprinkled over seeds or for making potting compost. It will improve the physical structure of the soil and make it more fertile. Leaf mould is incredibly rich and nutritious and I have found is very good for using in an onion or shallot bed.



Digging out the 2008 leaf mould to use in a shallot bed. This has the happy advantage of freeing up compost bins to make this year's leaf mould.

So, next time you see some leaves in the Autumn, if you don't make leaf mould, have a go! Its a free way to get some wonderful organic matter into your soil and it is another step along the path to a more self sufficient/self reliant way of life.