Re: leaves and winterizing
Jeanne wrote:
> I have always heard that oak leaves are extremely acidic and should
not be
>left on the ground over the winter so I have religiously raked all of
>them out of my yard every year. What kind of leaves are you leaving
>in your flower gardens? Do you think I should just leave the oak
>leaves in mine?
I have always raked the leaves from the trees in my yard onto my gardens
for winter mulch. I have included some shredded oak leaves to add a
little acid to my otherwise VERY alkaline soil. (If left in big piles,
they mat down and form a moisture barrier, so I've always shredded them)
Sometimes I run over them with the lawn mower and sometimes I run them
through the leaf blower to shred them. Locust leaves (tiny and ovate)
make the best mulch for me. They break down in one season and form
gorgeous mulch.
The neighbors in my old community used to laugh when I would raid other
people's leaf piles at the curb for mulch. The other neighbors raked to
the street to be RID of those leaves, and I'd steal them back. <grin>
Pat
Pat-Mitchell@juno.com
USDA Zone 5 Milwaukee suburb - Wisconsin
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