How to use dry leaf mulch as fertiliser?

[VijayWani]

Hi there,

I have some dry leaves mulch of the fence screening/hedging trees. I want to know if I can use it as a fertilizer for veggie patch. 

If yes, How can I use it ?

Regards,

Vijay WaniFence Screening Trees

[Dave-1]

Good Afternoon @VijayWani 

I reuse/mulch my leaves from my gumtrees mainly. They do lack nitrogen apparently so when i pile them up to rot I mix other debris with them. I have used them as layers in my compost system but usually I just use it as weed cover and let the leves suffocate the weeds, then turn it into the soil after a year.

I would suggest to check what your lemon trees? leaves are made of and then see what else you may need to grow to "match up" with what is lacking in the compost. I have grown gren mulch before (peas or a few kinds I just threw old seeds out, I wasnt intereste din the peas but in their breakdown conponents) 

Dave

[MitchellMc]

Hi @VijayWani,

You can use dry leaf mulch for your veggie patch, but it’s important to understand the difference between using it as mulch versus using it as fertiliser. At the moment, dry leaves are mostly carbon, which means they provide very little nutrition to your plants. If you spread them around your veggies, they’ll act as a mulch, helping to retain soil moisture, suppress weeds, and slowly add organic matter, but they won’t give a significant nutrient boost until they break down. To turn them into a proper fertiliser, it’s best to start a compost heap or bin, adding your dry leaves as the “brown” material and balancing them with “green” materials like vegetable scraps, grass clippings, or coffee grounds, which supply nitrogen and help the leaves decompose faster. Regularly turning the compost will speed up this process, and after a few months, your leaves will transform into rich, dark compost that can be used to fertilise your veggie patch. In the meantime, you can still use the leaves as mulch around your veggies, but consider supplementing with an organic fertiliser for immediate nutrition.

Here's a helpful guide: How to make compost for your garden.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell