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Alex, IN

When you add leaves, horse or cow manure, etc. to you patch and you cant plow it or turn it under deeper than you could with a tiller. Does it still do just as much good for the soil as it would when you plow it?

Thanks,
Mikkal

2/15/2005 7:58:46 PM

Ctpumpkin@optonline.net

The more chopping the organic material receives, the finer it becomes & the more direct contact it makes with the soil & all of the bacteria it contains that help it to decay. So the worst case scenario is that it will take a little longer to decay. But worms will come & while you can't stop bacteria without more trouble than it's worth, you can speed the action. If you can afford to buy a commercial bacterial preperation that is formulated for the purpose, it will speed the process dramatically. If not, some good unsulfonated Molasses (Black Strap if you can find it where you live) will also work in time at speeding up the bacteria you already have.

Coffee grounds & Corn Meal will encourage worms too.

2/15/2005 8:51:30 PM

Montoursville, PA

Most likely the best approach is to run a nice compost pile for a year and apply 2004's leaves in the fall of 2005. In the meantime you can add grass, lawn and garden waste, household waste and a host of other stuff to come up with really good compost for fall use each year.

A husky guy can toss a huge pile for maximum value over the couse of a year with very little effort.

I know it is done but I prefer to not add raw components of compost into the soil in the spring.

Rule of thumb: Old in the Spring but spring for anything in the Fall.

2/16/2005 11:32:38 AM