Leaf Compost | Plastic Bag Composting
With summer coming to an end and the cool fall air already making an appearance, it won’t be long before leaf season is upon us. Soon the days will be spent raking leaves into large piles while feverishly trying to contain them before a gust of wind comes along and undoes your laborious efforts, but then what? You could take the time to transport the leaves that you worked so hard to collect and drop them off at a local yard waste facility or participating landfill, or you can turn those leaves into nutritious compost for your garden and yard projects next spring!
Leaf compost makes a great soil amendment and conditioner for gardens, yards, and landscaping projects, and it’s incredibly easy to make! To create a nutrient rich supply of leaf compost, all you need is some large 30-40 gallon heavy-duty or contractor grade plastic bags (opt for tear-free if they are available, they may be more expensive but they can be reused many times!), a big pile of leaves, and these three simple steps!
Step 1: Collect your Materials
While leaf compost can be made using only leaves, a lack of nitrogen will result in a much longer breakdown process before your hard work will magically transform into compost. In order to help speed up the natural breakdown of the leaves, it is best to add a little bit of green matter such as fresh grass clippings for an added nitrogen boost. For the best results you will want a 2:1 ration of leaves to grass.
TIP: If the leaves have not covered your yard in a thick blanket, you can save yourself some time ranking by simply mowing over the leaves with your lawnmower; this will leave with a finely chopped compost mix that is ready to add to a plastic bag!
Step 2: Mix it up
Once you have collected the proper ratio of leaves and lawn clippings you can begin adding the materials to your heavy-duty plastic bags. Fill them to the top! Once you have filled your plastic bags with your compost ingredients, you will need to add approximately one gallon of water to each full bag and then close the bag securely by tying it off with a piece of twine. After the bags are securely sealed, puncture each bag a few times in order to allow air to circulate and then place the bags somewhere outside and out of the way!
Step 3: Flip it and Forget It (for a little while…)
Even with a little extra help from nitrogen produced by adding lawn clippings, the natural breakdown process to create compost still takes time. In order to help the process along before the freezing winter temperatures arrive, create a reminder on your calendar to flip your compost bags every two weeks. When you flip the bags, shake them around a little bit to distribute the matter inside, this will also help accelerate the leaf composting process. Once winter arrives and the temps consistently drop below freezing, simply leave the bags alone until things thaw out again in the spring!
Once spring arrives you should be able to open your leaf bags and find a nice pile of dark, earthy compost. Making your own leaf compost in plastic bags is a great way to get a head start on your spring gardening chores and is also environmentally conscious. By making your own compost, you can help reduce the amount or organic waste that ends up in landfills while reducing your overall carbon footprint at the same time. Don’t have a garden or a need for compost? That’s okay too! For a small fee, Quad Cities Landfill will gladly accept your residential yard waste where it will be composted and not landfilled. For more information on composting yard waste in the Quad Cities, you can contact Millennium Waste or the Quad Cities Landfill at 309-787-2303.
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