October 1,1891. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
279 
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V 'ESrvI 
LEAF SOIL, 
ITS PREPARATION AND USES. 
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T HE value of good leaf mould for naturally heavy soil to mix 
with other ingredients as a compost for pot plants, and to 
utilise as a root-producing medium in a great variety of ways, can 
scarcely be over-estimated. I say good leaf mould, because much 
of the material used under that name is an unwholesome decaying 
mass of humus, abounding in injurious fungoid growths and 
minute insects, which render it totally unfit for plant food. To 
use such material when preparing the soil for plants in pots is to 
court failure, and even when mixed with the soil for outdoor 
crops it in time causes the bulk to become so sour that roots make 
very slow and unsatisfactory progress in it. To make matters 
worse the few roots which are formed speedily become a prey to 
the insects, which rapidly increase while the roots diminish, and 
before such soils can be again brought to a fertile state they must 
either be burnt, or receive heavy dressings of lime and soot to kill 
the insects and sweeten the soil. It may be thought that this is 
a rather sweeping assertion, but having seen the mischief wrought 
by using unsuitable leaf mould, I am convinced that so erroneous 
a practice cannot be too strongly condemned. In all cases where 
leaf soil is used it should be thoroughly examined to see that it 
is free from insects, and not in too advanced a state of decay. 
When in the best condition for use it is somewhat tough, and 
yet sufficiently decayed to allow of its being easily rubbed 
through a sieve, and still retain something of a “ springy ” 
nature. Roots will speedily take hold of such material as this, 
and form a perfect network around the small particles, from 
which they soon extract the fertilising properties, and ramble in 
search of another supply. 
There can be no doubt that the best of all leaf mould is 
obtained under trees where the leaves decay in a natural way, each 
succeeding year’s growth falling upon and covering the last, being 
thus disposed in thin layers, so that the air and rain can reach 
them ; they are in all stages of decay in the sweetest possible 
condition. Anyone who can obtain this kind of leaf soil from the 
woods should use it in preference to that obtained from any other 
source, and the way in which healthy rootlets permeate this 
wholesome material, which remains in a sweet condition for a long 
time, should speedily convince them of its great superiority over 
leaf soil formed in a heap in which fermentation takes place, and 
from which, to a great extent, the sweetening influence of the 
oxygen of the atmosphere is shut out. 
Few, however, are so favourably situated as to be able to 
command an unlimited amount of leaf soil of the best description, 
but they can do much towards securing a good substitute for it by 
collecting leaves into a heap and giving them the right treatment 
while they are in a state of decomposition. At the present time 
of the year, when leaves are beginning to fall in abundance, 
provision should be made for placing a good quantity in a heap 
where they can be turned several times during the course of the 
ensuing year, and kept regularly moist to induce continuous decay. 
Where no sheltered position in which they can be placed without 
fear of being scattered by winds already exists, a few hurdles, or, 
better still, a strong wooden fence can be formed into a square, and 
the leaves placed therein as they are collected, scattering them over 
the whole surface as they are placed there, keeping them as free as 
possible from sticks, which create fungoid growths. Occasionally 
No. 588.—Yol. XXIII., Third Series. 
they should be trodden firmly so as to avoid rapid fermentation. 
They will require no further attention till the spring months, 
when decay is visibly taking place. Turn and thoroughly mix 
them, water being applied as the work proceeds. If they are 
in the least dry let them remain loosely together without 
treading, as there will be no danger of excessive heating by 
fermentation. 
The heap can remain in this state till the end of the following 
September, when it may again be turned, and by this time the 
leaves should be in a half-decayed state, and may, if the room 
is required for other leaves, be removed to an open position, 
as the greater density of their bulk will prevent their being 
displaced by wind. At this stage a few insects will probably be 
noticed, and the addition of a litt'e soot will destroy many of 
these, and also add to the richness of the soil. If it is desirable 
to hasten decay as much as possible to have a portion of it ready 
for use a little lime may be added to each layer. This will 
sweeten it, and have the effect of causing rapid decomposition ; 
but this will be accomplished slightly at the expense of the 
richness of the leaf soil, though considering the sweet and whole¬ 
some condition of it the apparent wastefulness of the practice 
is not worthy of serious consideration. 
Leaves which have been used for supplying bottom heat in 
the Pine pit till they are thoroughly decayed, are sometimes 
mixed with soil for plants in pots without further preparation. 
This practice cannot be too strongly condemned, especially in 
cases where the whole of the leaves are not renewed annually, 
but where a portion of the old ones are mixed with the new, 
this part is generally full of minute insects, which speedily in¬ 
crease and spread throughout the whole heap. Where there is 
no alternative but to use this material I have found the only 
safe course to pursue is to place it in thin layers on the top 
of a boiler or flue, where it gets thoroughly dried and every insect 
destroyed ; a little water is then applied, and the whole well 
mixed together before using. And I may here slightly diverge 
from my subject to say, that when there is the slightest suspicion 
that any soil required for potting purposes is infested with insects 
of any kind, burn in the way described before using. This 
simple preventive would be the means of avoiding many failures 
which are at times recorded. 
The uses of leaf soil are manifold, and there are many ways 
of using it with advantage, which are not thought of by culti¬ 
vators generally. When in a half-decayed state it forms an 
excellent mulching for Vine borders and all kinds of fruit trees, 
especially in cases where roots are not abundant, and it is abso¬ 
lutely essential to attract them to the surface. I know of nothing 
in which the roots of Yines and fruit trees will root so readily 
as in leaf soil. At various times, when requiring small quantities 
for special purposes, I have carefully removed some from Vine 
borders which had a few months previously been covered with 
half-decayed leaves, and invariably found them closely matted 
with roots just under the surface, and I am confident that 
in many cases a top-dressing of similar material would be of 
more benefit to fruit trees than the crude manure often given, 
as roots will not penetrate it until it is in a more advanced state 
of decay. 
For forking into flower beds and herbaceous borders, or for use 
upon seed or nursery beds in the kitchen garden, leaf soil is also 
invaluable. For mixing with other soils for pot plants it is in 
constant demand, and wherever any quantity of plants are grown 
in pots a heap should always be kept in a suitable condition for 
constant use. Although almost any plant in cultivation will thrive 
exceedingly well in a compost in which it is freely intermixed, yet 
great discrimination is needed to use it in proper quantities on 
different classes of plants, as it produces quick healthy growth, but 
is not lasting in its effects. It should, therefore, be sparingly used 
for plants which are to remain undisturbed for several years, or it 
o. 2244.—Yol. LXXXY., Old Series. 
