How to Make Leaf Mold (3 Methods)
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- Опубліковано 2 жов 2024
- Leaf mold (mould) is a fantastic soil amendment that adds organic matter to soil and increases the amount of moisture soil can hold. Leaf mold is similar to compost, but is made from just leaves. It is easy to make, but takes a long time to decompose. Gardener Scott shows three methods for making leaf mold for any garden. (Video #228)
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I'm a mushroom cultivator and I have a secret gem for all you wonderful gardeners. There is a beautiful, gourmet, purple mushroom called a Blewit. I grow these mushrooms on piles of straw and leaf matter, that is their favourite food. The mycelium breaks down the organics rapidly and in the Fall, you get incredibly delicious and beautiful mushrooms. Thanks for the videos man!
Cody, would wine caps work? I would grow blewits, but Florida does not get the frost that blewits need. If not wine caps, what other mushrooms will work?
@@garryw-vc6qm that's the basic procedure, yep
Is there a chance other mushrooms would grow? Poisonous ones? I've always wanted to grow mushrooms. Where do you get your spores? I was told you could chop store bought mushroom (just the white kind) and spread the pieces because they have spores.
Interesting story here - when my 50 yo maple was alive, of course it dropped huge amounts of leaves. I would rake them into a huGe pile, all the neighbor kids would come play in it. By the time they were tired, the leaves were well crushed. Then I'd pile them into 33 gallon trash bags, drag them out back for the leaf mold pile. Those kids never knew how much work they saved me! It was a huge tree & we did this maybe 3 times every fall. The tree died, the kids grew up. They told me they missed the leaves
Love the video! For those of you collecting leaves from random people, be cautious that person may use chemicals on their lawns that leach into their trees root systems.
I had a HUGE pile on my 10 acres. I would collect everyones fall leaf droppings in fall (roughly 50-75 bags). The structure was very solid . Filled to top about 4’ high. Left it open ontop. Fall rains and winter snow compacked it dramatically. Spring came. The grass is growing like crazy. I cut 6 acres. Then get my lawn sweeper and add many sweeper fulls of grass to the leaves. And got my pitcfork and fluffed it all in w/leaves. Then piled cut grass on top. Come end of may early june. Heavy tarp it. And plant squash around the outer edges of pile. Whoaaaa! You wouldnt BELIEVE how huge they were. The pile was ALWAYS MOIST inside. Squash roots would grow under the pile. Come fall. Id harvest the squash. Pull off the vines. Remove tarp. Get my pitch fork. And put all the broken down leaves (BLACK GOLD), ontop of my garden. And get ready to do it all again.
Wow. Thanks!
Sounds like you hit on a winning combination.
four pallets tied together, line with cardboard. fill with leaves over winter. plant a squash on top for summer, and dig out the lovely leafmould next autumn, repeat
I saw bags and bags of leaves in someone’s yard today. The man was thrilled for me to take them off his hands. Almost excited as I was to be taking them!
I’ve done the same thing when I lived up North! Love all the leaves ! It’s excellent!
I've been tempted to ask but am so shy. The bagged leaves are just sitting there looking so convenient.
I’ve even used just leafmould with some organic fertilizer to grow container potatoes very successfully. It’s pretty easy to make here in Ireland if the leaves are shredded as it doesn’t dry out and rarely freezes. I especially like that it’s free. Works for me!
Great video! Might bring a garbage bag to collect some after lecture. There is a lot of leaves by a parking lot wall that is a foot thick.
Great video. I rototill my leaves directly into my garden in the fall. When spring comes, the many freeze-thaw cycles, tear the leaves apart.
A quick rototilling in the spring and the leaves are completely assimilated into the soil. I have done this for 40 years.
Have to love Mother Nature. Wooded leafy areas are always in this state of a healthy ecosystem. While not complete for some plants. Top soils from wooded areas have huge potential for gardening. Thanks for all the information. I always learn from you.
I am a beginner and have lately started improving my backyard that was lying barren till now. Your small tips are very useful for viewers like me . I do find great teaching attributes in you, used to the utmost potential. Thank you for making such helpful videos.
Making black gold is like making fine wine. You gotta stomp on it, also leaf mold punching bad is great anger management.
Scott- I love your calming voice and concise presentation. Have a great day!
Those leaf blower/vacuum things are the way to go. I got one at a garage sale for $10 bucks. If I grind them 2x, kinda look like corn flakes. When I was a kid, I was told to pour a container (gallon) of muddy water into a black trash bag filled with leaf fragments, keeping any snow off and waiting until early/late summer. Use mixture with garden or potted plants. I'm not sure if the muddy water would have any beneficial fungi etc that the leaves wouldn't already have.. it's easy and hasn't failed yet..
Thank you much
SCOTT, THANKS A LOT FOR YOUR FARMING TECHNIQUES. I LEARNED MANY THINGS FROM YOU... PROF DEN, PHILIPPINES
5th year gardener here. I’ve been watching your videos for about 4 years or so and trying very much of it. Today, my garden soil would make anyone proud! These soil feeding presentations really work! Beyond my expectations...Thanks!
ahh.. Gardner scott.. a funguy i like having around.. :P just put a whole lot of leaves shredding via lawnmower on the garden today to use as mulch.
I still have two types of leaf shredder, one looks like a shop vacuum with a spinning nylon string to shred leaves (you might find these at garage sales). That type is an electric motor in a plastic drum that sits over a 40-60 gallon trash can. The other looks like a gasoline-powered lawn mower and sucks leaves and twigs up from the yard, shreds them and bags them. I just make a decomposition mound or cover my garden in the fall (to rototill or spade into the existing soil). I've also used the plastic bag method (but my neighbors thought I was nuts until I showed them the "black gold" results after just over a year). This is a fantastic video!
Hey Gardner Scott- Wow! You’re full of great knowledge! Here in central fla. & trees? None. They’re considered projectile’s in storm season. I’ve gotta go find a local park for leaves but- I will! Thank you!
I have tons of leaves in my yard in the winter and I pulverize them with the lawn mower. It's amazing how a huge pile of leaves can be turned into a tiny pile. I've only ever used them in my compost, never tried making leaf mold. Good Stuff!
Great idea with the fabric around the cage I'm bout to do this thanks!
I use my lawn mower with the bagger so it's easier to collect
I use a weed eater in a plastic mineral tub. Works much better than the lawn mower.
We’ve been doing this for many years. It is so much easier than hot compost. And now we know it’s mold not compost, too. Thank you Gardener Scott!
I went leafing today and hit the leaf lottery! Some gardeners helped me bag up and fill my truck. Im in heaven!! I can’t wait to try two of the methods, the pen and the bags. I’m wondering about putting a layer of leaves down in a tree/perennial area and covering with wood chips. Do you think that’s a sound idea for building soil?
I think it's a great idea and I'm doing that in a few areas of my garden.
Just wanted to remind everyone, that if the leaves are not broken down completely, and you use this as a mulch...it will initially rob your topsoil of nitrogen. It can become even more detrimental for fruits/vegetables if you're turning them into the soil. Great tutorial!
I use my DR Power chipper to grind the leaves to very small 1/8" pieces. The leaves turn into leaf mold very fast when you have small pieces of leaf material plus the wind doesn't blow them away.
The fastest and easiest way to chop up the dry leaves is to lay it on the grass and run the lawn mower over it. It was lightning fast and all captured in the bag. So Easy!
THANKS FOR THIS INFORMATION. IM GOING TO ADD CHEMICALLY FREE GRASS CLIPPINGS TO MY LEAF MULCH
thanks Scott, hope all is well with you.
Leaf mould is a wonderful thing. It takes a long time to make it here in Canada if using the bag method. I find that using a compost bin works the best for me, and giving the leaves a good soak. Bulk is required here when trying to make leaf mould. The freeze/thaw cycle helps move things along, so the leaves must be quite damp or as they say "like a wrung out sponge.'
I have heard gardeners using straight leaf mould as a potting medium or a seed starter medium. I am hoping to research that a little more.
take care Scott.
Thanks, Kris.
Use a weed eater in a garbage can to break down the leaves.
Just did this over the weekend.
Very good video Scott. It's such an important message: Leaves are an important resource for the sustainability and ecology of a garden. I just store them in bags somewhere in the shade for a year or two until they're ready. But the round compost bin with landscape fabric is a bloody brilliant idea for normal compost. I'll try it instead of a new permanent bin made out of wood, thanks for that great idea.
I will try this year. I am living in Canada. I have 7 big maple trees around my house.😣
I subbed to your channel a couple weeks ago and I am SOO HAPPY I found your channel and that you make such wonderful content. From my family to yours God Bless and best wishes to you all in these trying times.
Thank you! Welcome to the channel!
Nice methods, Gardener Scott. I collect my fall leaves religiously with the good intentions of starting a leaf mold pile, but eventually use it all up as mulch - shredded leaves are the best mulch! Guess I am just going to have to let my woodchips bring in the fungi!!!
My chickens are at work on my leaves right now!👍♥️🤓🐔
I used the bag method over the winter in the spring the leafs were not dirt but broken down. I used them as mulch and found they were transformative. The soil remained moist all spring and summer in Atlanta. when you moved the mulch the soil was alive full of baby worms and dark and just fantastic. I am doing it again this year and collecting more leaves. The mulch lasted until mid to end of August much longer then we first thought it would. Saved $300 in mulch costs doing this and ended up with healthier soil and plants. This year I am using a Worx leaf shredder to break up the leaves really gets them small and also creates leaf dust.
t7957r I have the same shredder. Had it sitting unopened in my garage for at least 10 years. Silly me!! I made a nice amount of leaf mulch a few weeks ago and hope to make even more. It even worked on damp leaves when they were mixed with dry ones.
Putting leafs in a 35 gallon plastic garbage can and using a weed whacker works wonders too. It turns them to nearly powder and works surprisingly well. I put my weed whacker in an empty garbage can, fill about 1/3 and go to town, it doesn't take long either. Not my idea but a UA-cam tip and nothing to buy.
To chop my leaves I use my weed whacker and a $20 red garbage can I got at Ace Hardware. Works really well for me. I toss an old towel over the top of the can to contain the leaves as they chop.
Ironic that I just finished putting up a trelis and have a piece of fence that needs a purpose. I'm going to use everthing he said but make it a square and butt it up against my tomatos growing in raised containers. Then the tomatos can grow up the chain link fence and have it serve a dual purpose. The raised beds are nearly 3 feet off the ground so it will take me a couple of years before the leaves get that high. I also love the fabric idea but I would line the inside of the wire and it will also help contain the leaves.
Just wanted to share my experience with the group. I did an experiment this past summer. Had a wire bin (2' diameter x 3' tall). In early May, filled it to the top with chopped leaves that were still in my garden from the previous fall. By early October, it was COMPLETELY decomposed! The only thing I did was soak it every week or so for about the first month, that's it. Of course, your mileage may vary. And I totally agree with putting compost bins in the garden if you have the space. Keeps all the nutrition right there where you want it.
That's great! Thanks for sharing.
Excellent! Thank u!
I am excited to receive and wear my new shirt I just ordered from your line of merchandise. I love your videos.
As always,Thanks for helpful tips Scott. Love the 3rd option, I’ve got a very small backyard so hoping that would work best, going to get bagged leafs from neighbors that throw out ::-)
If you have a Lot of leaves every year (or glean a lot), make leaf mold and then the next summer after it is decently molded, make compost. Or make leaf mold and then throw waste twigs and partially rotted branches in it and make even better fungal compost for woody perennials. Or let it go to leaf mold and then start feeding veggie scraps or manure to the inside of the pile, digging holes in it, adding scraps/manure, covering back up...to make a giant compost worm heap. Tarping all these helps moderate moisture and temperature swings.
Excellent show. I have 5 piles going at any given time and ever yr I add 1 or 2 piles to my garden. I also have a wood chipper and I chip my brush and black bag that as well. I'm blessed to have so many neighbors who bring me their kitchen waste, leaves and grass clippings
Very cool video, Gardener Scott. I appreciate your explanations for each of the three methods. "I'm using a Philips-head screwdriver" cracked me up. Thanks for making this video!
We have a ton of leaves at our new house. Hubs mulched them up and we put them in a pile surrounded by wire fencing. I'll see about getting some landscape fabric
They make electric leaf shredders. Works great.
It was great
Thank you
oh man, i forgot my lawn mower has a bag attachment.. i've never used it. I'm using that joker this year!
I made one lot in a black garbage bag, I didn't bother chopping it but I threw in topsoil from a 2L pot which I had planted some annual in that had long disappeared. And water. Amazing stuff after 2 years, really black and loamy. ( I forgot about it, it was in a corner of the garden with some empty pots).
Years ago I had bagged leaves from my next door neighbor. He has a service that cares for his yard and in late fall they run a rider lawn mower over and over the brown leaves. When the ground leaf pieces are small enough they run the mower over again but this time to suck up the tiny pieces for disposal. I asked and they dumped the leaf pieces in my yard. I bagged them in black garbage bags and forgot about them for a couple years. When I went to inspect them I found holes formed in the bags allowing water and worms into and out of the bags. The stuff inside was really amazing but the smell seemed a little off. I dumped them into a raised garden and the smell quickly improved.
Now that I’ve seen this video I remembered and I now will fill some bags for 2022. BTW, I recently acquired some bags of used coffee grounds and think I’ll put some of that in with the leaves.
I’m wondering if leaf mold or aerobic bacteria will form.
Thanks gardener Scott for this and other videos.
First time I ever heard of leaf mold was from you in one of your past videos. Great content.
I will suggest that even in VERY cold winters, decomposition does not stop entirely. It's massively slowed down but it doesn't stop. Especially bigger piles of organic matter that are connected to the earth.
Add fresh cut grass and then it rots down fast.
To prevent them from blowing away. I put a layer of soil as weight to prevent them from blowing away
Does it help to add a few handfuls of compost to act as an inoculant of bacteria and fungi, after each layer of leaves?
A previous batch of leaf mold would be a better inoculant, but it really isn't necessary.
Thank you, Gardener Scott. This explains exactly what I wanted to know. I have usually thrown out my piles of excess leaves...but I won't this year. Method #1 looks best for my situation. Again. valuable information.
I pile them up around all my trees and when I cut the green grass I pile it on top,then another layer of dried leaves and top it off with a two inch layer of soil. I let it sit for at least a month before turning it over and repeating the process. I do this throughout the winter as well and right before spring here in zone 7a Newport News Virginia. I till to mix it all evenly to emend my soil from the previous grow season. From there I fill all my raised bed boxes and five gallon buckets and pots.
Thank you for showing the reverse leaf blower method. I wasn’t sure if that made the leaves too small. Glad to know I’m ok with doing this.
Very helpful video. Great tip about placement under a tree. I am in the process of doing the same with a contractor bags and using my lawn mower to make the leaves smaller. I punched holes in my bag as well
i under utilized a very large oak trees' leaf "waste", many years ago. I did use it's leaves as a filler in 4 large planters for tomatoes, and they produced! but I didn't continue the formula.
the leaf pile under a big ole tree is very fertile.
Just filled two buckets of amazing garden dirt from a good section of leaf gutter, apparently when the cat climbs to the roof and meows while standing by the gutter, she was saying "come up here and get all this dirt for the garden". There should be another 6 or so buckets in the rest of the gutters, which is good as we just ran out of nice amended garden dirt for the window garden~
I bag my leaves in fall and wet them, then seal the bags and leave them in the sun for the winter, in late winter I run the somewhat decomposed leaves through my cement mixer with some scrap iron pieces and pulverize the leaves into small pieces then add that to my gardens and flower beds. This adds nutrients and holds moisture and feeds the bacteria in the soil and draws earthworms. . This simplifies making leaf mold no bins needed and no chopping or turning of the leaves.
I have forest literally for miles around my house. 500 acres just on the land I'm on. I rent a small house out the country and I am starting to gather leaves now. There's no limit to how many leaves I could gather. Time will be my only constraint. I'm chopping them with the lawn mower.
Wow I love those compost bins made from pallets. I will definitely be borrowing that idea!
interesting how only leaves break down alone, but the other stuff has to be a mixture. i am currently spreading the leaves we started last year. not totally broken down yet, but i don't want new ones put in on top of these. it looks great so i am mixing it in to raised beds, half drums and bins. hope it will continue to break down mixed in with the other soils.
Andy this is what I do I spread this years leaf mold next early summer, I do chop it with the garden tractor, go over it a few times then store in builder dump bags, works just fine
Very useful ideas. I will have to keep in mind for the end of summer hopefully we will have something to turn into leaf mould next year here in Australia. Just one thing though a METER is a measurement device and a METRE is a unit of measurement. Keep up the great videos mate.
In the U.S., we spell the unit of measurement "meter." It's the whole British vs. American spelling issue (kind of like color vs. colour). Cheers! :-)
4:10 This reminds me of the episode of The Beverly Hillbillies when Granny meets some hippies and teachers them how to dig taters, which they think is a groovy new dance.
my aunt used to collect leaves for her garden. the newspaper once published a picture of her with a wheelbarrow piled with bags of leaves from her neighbors. that was back in the '70's.
How do you know when it is ready and exactly how do you use it?
It can be used as mulch any time, but when it turns fluffy and dark brown it is ready for amending soil.
@@GardenerScott Great .. Thank you
Love the vids......but......wearing safety glasses when vacc'ing leaves gave me a shake of the head giggle moment.
Harden up Gardener Scott, it's a vaccum......bwah ha ha ha ha ha
Very useful video, thank you.
There is some concern about deseases and harmful insects which can be contained within fallen leaves. Do you need to treat for them?
I don't treat the leaves. It is a good idea to avoid diseased leaves. None of the harmful insects that could damage my plants will live in a decomposing leaf pile.
a friend goes to all tbe trouble of mowing up and bagging the leaves, then brings them to me. all i do is show her where to put them!!!
I'm still raking....
Such good information from this post. Unfortunately one of my sites became anaerobic because the holes were plugged. The smell was AWFUL! My question now, is that anaerobic bag unusable? Or how can I rectify the situation. I know now that the leaves must NOT be left sitting in water. Thank you .
It is definitely usable. Take the leaves out of the bag to dry and use them as mulch or start again to decompose completely.
Thank you gardener Scott
Do a quick search here for the Johnson-Su compost bioreactor, and the science behind it, it is mind blowing what you can do with an aerobic statics compost pile
I have a pile the size of a car and I’m only a third done collecting leaves. I was going to burn them until now. Thanks!
Another good way to break up the leaves is to use a weed wacker on the pile.
check out JADAM the book, he adds a microbial solution with grass in bags and it's done in 3 months
Geobin makes excellent enclosures.
I love my geobin. Great for compost and great for leafmould.
Could you use a plastic 60 gallon garbage can instead of the trash bags?
Sure. That would be more durable.
I used shredded up leaves and a thin layer of Biochar DG in a trash barrel. Roughly 3-1 ratio. Took pretty much 1 year - was hoping for less . In a second barrel I used shredded up leaves and a thin layer of black Kow as an experiment. Took about the same time . Help !
It naturally takes longer for leaves to break down. You might decrease the time with more nitrogen material but it won't be fast.
#gardenerscott
Great video #gardenerscott am thinking using the enclosure method but wrapped around between trees. This way I can use trees as support of enclosure.plus I don’t loose ground space. Since space between my trees I can’t utilize, I might as well use it as an enclosure. I can probably build five of these types utilizing the gaps between trees. The diameter will range from 4-6 feet. I have access to tons of leaves, might as well make them work for me. I can probably wrap a liner on lower portion one feet high to prevent loss of leaves. Was thinking of using chicken wire. Any thoughts/suggestions/comments?
Chicken wire can work but may bend under the mass of leaves. A double layer may be good.
GARDENER SCOTT, DID YOU EVER WATCH PAUL JAMES- GARDENING BY THE YARD ?Thank you Scott !! I learned about chopping up the leaves many years ago from Paul James when his TV show Gardening by the yard. He put leaves in a garbage can, started up the weedeater and used it like a stick blender to chop up the leaves. It works well !!😊
I enjoy that show! Thanks for reminding me.
Thanks you
I have a large rectangular area (defined by logs and straw bales), approximately 6 or 7 feet by 12 ft. It’s located in a shade area of my yard, at the base of several trees, mostly incense cedar. I started this compost bed as a slow bed, using the “lasagne”method…alternating layers of cardboard, crushed or shredded oak leaves from my own property, and grass clippings from a neighbor. The slow method works well since my raised bed garden is very small.
This year I added a 3-5 inch layer of aged horse manure. I bury my own kitchen compost scraps in this bed, rotating around to different areas. Sometimes I add garden clippings, but I’m careful not to compost plant material with blight or powdery mildew. I also toss in the loose straw as it ages and decomposes, or after I’ve used it for mulch.
Keeping the compost bed damp in summer is my biggest struggle, especially in our drought-prone area, but I have used cardboard to keep it covered. I water it after sundown when it needs it. Sounds like I’m already making compost with leaf mold…without having instruction! I’m happy to have watched this video that confirms the logic of what I’m doing. One question…is it a problem that some incense cedar pieces-needles or seed pods-get mixed in with the grass clippings I use? I have read that cedar can retard growth of garden plants. Is it okay mixed with other organic material, and composted? My material is primarily oak leaves, which break down very slowly. I’m hoping an annual addition of horse manure will help speed and further enrich the compost. I seem to be getting a rich, dark compost mixture which holds moisture.
It isn't really a big problem that cedar is mixed in, but those pieces will take a long time to break down and can temporarily deplete some nitrogen in the mix. If you can, you might want to keep it separate and use as mulch.
always good content thanks, i have tried chopping leaves and spread on my beds , it works well
I read about the benefits of leaf mold and I have already started 2 bins about 5 feet in diameter. One is about 4 foot tall the other is 5 but isnt full yet. Its been real windy and I didnt want them blowing out. I used some hardware cloth panels I got from the trash and some chicken wire a neighbor gave me. I have the room under a tree and all the time I need. As I understand it, leaf mold is a good substitute for peat moss, but unlike peat it has some nutrients. Since I do mainly container gardening a free peat replacement is a fantastic thing.
I use leaf mould in container composts rather than peat and to refresh old compost for reuse. It’s wonderful stuff. Much much better than peat and best of all free! Good luck using yours.
@@gailthornbury291 Thanks for the post, it reinforces what I read on a couple of other sites. Leaves are very plentiful in my maple tree lined town. Even after filling the leaf mold bins I have about 20 bags of them for compost and mulch next season. If any are left they will go into next years leaf mold bin. I am a very budget gardener and free is always my favorite price. Peat is about $13 a bag, money I can use to buy things I cant make.
Thanks for your video, regards from Jakarta Indonesia
I live in the judean hills and have collected leaves as you demonstrated in large black bags. My question is do the leaves decompose faster in heat? We have mild winters and hot summers.
Heat will help it decompose faster.
So basically, leaf mold is just composted leaves...
I add seaweed and comfrey leaves to mine, here in Atlantic Canada. Does this dilute the nutrient content? My grandmother swore by seaweed and comfrey.
well likely not because leaves aren't actually that high in nutrients besides minerals, leaves don't have much npk while kelp and comfrey leaves would add to the npk more than the leaves so it works either way leaves create good soil structure which is why I use them.
They will add to the nutrient content. Both are great sources for nutrients that plants need.
Hey Scott...does it matter or hurt/help if there are fine green grass clippings mixed in with mulched leaves ? I have a large collection system on my zero turn mower that chops the leaves up fine with the deck raised up high but also mixes high grass at the same time.... Thanx for the great videos!!!!!!!!!
I think it helps. it helps add some nitrogen to the mix.
@@GardenerScott awesome thank you....
I got 300 cubic feet of completely wet salary three leaves. Due to the leaves being soaked in water it was impossible to dry them since I live in zone 5 in Norway. In the centre of the pile I have around 100 degrees fahrenheit. I'm not able to shredd the leaves due to the water. My electric shredder only gets clogged when I try to shredd the wet leaves. Any tricks to make my leaves ready for next summer? Now we already have 28 degrees fahrenheit outside. My hot compost bin is 153 degrees fahrenheit, but too small to fit all the leaves.
If you haven't done it yet, covering the pile to reduce the amount of new snow and rain should allow it to retain and increase heat. In spring, turning the pile can accelerate decomposition.
@@GardenerScott I covered the pile and the inside temperature was 60 degrees fahrenheit when the outside temperature was 0 degrees fahrenheit. I have extreme ammounts of worms in this pile, but the pile is not finished even though it has been sitting for 7 months. I have lots of fresh grass clippings, so I wonder if I should mix this into my pile? It will probably raise the temperature of the pile to 160 degrees fahrenheit, which will make the worms leave the pile.
@@KayWessel Cool piles decompose slower. Fresh grass and turning the pile can increase the heat and hasten the break down, but you're right that the worms will leave.
Hello Gardner Scott, I have 6 citrus trees , I have a friend give a load EUK leaves and little pieces chopped from branches is it ok to layer around my trees to keep the dirt from drying out , gets reality hot here 115-120 in summer
They should work fine as a mulch.
I have a bunch of woods around me, can I grab some lower layers of decomposed leaves & throw them in my boxes?
Sure. That will probably add beneficial fungi.
I Love leaf mold. I used to buy leaf mold about40 years ago. Now you cant find it. I used a tumbler composter at my previous home to compost leaves since I had some trees. Where I live now are young trees so I am going to have to wait a few years to have enough leaves to compost. Because leaf mold is fungi dominate, does it have a adverse affect on plants that want more bacterial dominated microbes?
It's not an adverse effect, but not as beneficial for vegetable plants. They tend to like bacterial dominant soil, but leaf mold can still improve soil structure.
I use less leaf mould on the veggie plants and annuals and more of it on the pines and other evergreens and on the front gardens which are perennial flowers. The leaves do have minerals contained in them so they would be beneficial in small amounts to the annuals and veggies.
Scott I just tilled mine in the garden after mowing and bagging the leafs. Do it my way what have I missed out on? I applied lime and will check the soils PH.
The leaves will add minerals and a few nutrients, you may need other amendments for more nutrients.