The Making of Leaf Mulch

This morning I walked out of my front door and noticed something different about the giant Silver Maple that towers above my front yard. It was holding onto a patch of incendiary red leaves high in its branches. Change is in the air, or rather attached to a branch in the air. This Silver Maple is joined by a group of other large maples that keep my house in part shade year round. This creates a challenge for full sun activities like tending a veggie garden or tanning in the nude until begin to turn red with the maple leaves. Despite the challenges to my tan line, the maples do offer two resources in the form of shade and plentiful leaves. 

These are not often thought of as resources, but they certainly are. Shade offers a respite from the scorching Summer sun, and leaves provide habitat to many butterflies, frogs, and birds who rely on the leaf litter to make it through Winter. Leaving your leaves through the Winter is one of the most important things you can do to help wildlife in your neighborhood. To make the best of these resources, I built a bin to hold leaves this Spring. My neighbors have even gotten in on this and offered their leaves to the bin. In this issue I will teach you how to make your own leaf mulch and how to construct a leaf mulch bin. 

Forwarded this newsletter? Subscribe to the weekly digest here.

Leaf mulch is similar to other mulch because it retains soil moisture, suppresses weeds, and provides nutrition to plants. I prefer it is because it is a free resource, and it looks beautiful. Your leaf mulch will be unique to your yard and trees, while everyone else selects between brown or red mulch from Home Depot. To make leaf mulch follow these steps:

1. In the Spring rake leaves into your leaf mulch bin. 

2. Turn monthly with a pitchfork until Summer or Fall. Water Occasionally and position the bin in a sunnier spot.

3. Pull the leaf mulch out and add it to your beds as needed.

Leaf mulch is the version of collected leaves where it is most whole and able to suppress weeds. As the leaves in the bin age, they turn into a leaf mold, which is a great soil amendment. Here’s a breakdown, because it is difficult to find information on this online. 

Leaf Mulch: Aged under a year and still looks like leaves. It is laid to retain moisture, suppress weeds, and insulate.

Leaf Mold: Aged 1-3 years to a soft crumbly black material that smells woodsy. Ignore the bad connotation coming from the word “mold” as this improves soil structure and microbial life. It gets the name because the process is more fungal driven. It has less nutrients than a hot kitchen compost but it is still a great soil amendment.

How to Build a Leaf Mulch Bin

The process is very easy and it only took me a few hours and a trip to the hardware store. I’d encourage you to try and build this even if you don’t consider yourself handy. You can also use the same type of bin for a normal kitchen compost bin if you prefer to go that route. Below are the materials you will need to complete the project.

Materials and Tools:

Tools:

• Wire cutters

• Tape Measure

• Pitchfork

• Mallet

Materials:

• 4ft metal t-posts

• 4ft wire mesh

• Carabiner

• Zip Ties

Once you have all of the materials you can follow these steps to finish the project. I figured it out, so I know you can as well. If you have any questions, just send me an email or message on Instagram.

Steps to build leaf mulch bin:

1. Measure a 4ft by 4ft square on the ground. Pick a spot that is somewhat sunny if you can with access to a water hose to occasionally wet the leaf pile.

2. Place the t-posts in the ground in the corners with the little hooks facing outside from the bin.

3. Cut the wire mesh to around 17’ with the wire cutters. This will be trimmed down a bit later.

4. Face your 4 poles from the direction you will be using it. Wrap the mesh around the t-post to your closest left post. Secure with zip ties.

5. Wrap the mesh around the outside of the poles clockwise securing with zip ties as you go. Make sure the door will reach across to close.

6. Leave the door with some extra space, but shorten wire mesh to a length that feels right. It will expand a bit when it is filled with leaves.

7. Fold the end of the wire over so it is not sharp. Rig a door closure using a zip tie and a carabiner.

That’s all you need to build the bin! It’s a simple afternoon project that can save you money on mulch in the long run, while reducing your need to purchase mulch and compost. Reply to this email if you think you might try this project! I’m here to help if you have any questions. With all the chaos in the world, each step towards self sufficiency adds a little peace of mind.

Special Announcement

I’m really excited to share the new Mascot and logo for The Plot! The design was completed by the talented artist Ice Hero. I’m going to need to order stickers ASAP.

This Weekend in the Midwest Garden

1. Build the leaf mulch bin: It’s the topic of the newsletter, so I legally have to suggest you give it a try this weekend!

2. Purchase bulbs for Fall planting: Now is a good time to buy bulbs to plant this fall. Look out for sales at local botanic gardens or nurseries. Olbrich gardens has an ongoing fall bulb sale.

3. Lawn Care: It’s a great time to aerate and over seed your lawn. I’ll share more below on how I cared for my lawn this week.

Plot Notes From My Garden

The American lawn is an obsession that has created ecologically sterile neighborhoods. However, it does have value in use for recreation, meditation, and creating gathering spaces. While my overall goal is to reduce my lawn and replace it with native perennials, it’s equally important to me that the lawn I do keep is well cared for. Here’s what I did this week.

1. Rented an aerator to puncture holes in the ground and improve the soil structure.

2. Overseeded the area with a sun & shade mix of grass.

3. Set up a sprinkler on a timer to run twice a day for 10 minutes each.

I’m very happy that I talked to my neighbor this in Spring, because he ended up renting the aerator and I lent him my seeder. The power of community!

I used Nextdoor this week to connect with my neighbors and picked up a ton of plants from some cool people in Madison. They are all getting added to a section near the back of my fence, and I was completely devoured by mosquitos while planting some last night.

Lastly, I attended the native gardening conference this week at the UW Arboretum! I attended sessions on native plant design, nature journaling, and toured the garden to freshen up on my plant ID. I’d love to see you there next year if you are in the Midwest, dear reader.

What I Loved This Week

• Read: Keeping a Nature Journal - Nature journaling is very therapeutic. You should definitely give it a try if you have never tried it.

• Watch: 5 Tips for Attracting Owls to Your Yard - Badgerland Birding

• Listen: The Pink Prairie Mascot by Points North - This was a phenomenal podcase episode.

• Connect: Rooted - A community group in Madison. I happened upon one of their events while cycling past the Troy Community Gardens.

Reader Feature:

Written for 114 beautiful readers. 💌
This newsletter grows best by word of mouth. Forward The Plot to your friend who is always in the garden!

Until next Thursday,
Ken Welch

About the Author

Ken Welch is a horticulturist and works in research funding at UW Madison. He’s drawn to native ecosystems, community gardens, and helping others grow confidence in their craft.

Instagram | Bluesky 

Forwarded this newsletter? Subscribe to the weekly digest here.