From ChurchMouse - Sick Soil after WWII - Thanks to Man-Made Cures for Soil

ChurchMouse:

As elated growers applied more nitrogen, it bound up with calcium in the soil which, in turn, produced weak cell walls in crops. Insects then arrived to eat the less-than-optimum plants. Growers then applied petrochemical-based insecticide which killed the pests — along with micro-organisms necessary for good, nutritious plants. Further nitrogen applications burned the decomposed plant matter necessary for any other micro-organisms to exist.

More at this link.

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GJ - I was going to write about leaving the leaves alone when ChurchMouse published this.

If we believe in Creation, it only makes sense that letting God's design take over will produce better and healthier results than using stinky, obnoxious, toxic manufactured chemicals.

Man-made chemicals seep through the soil and enter the water table. Organic amendments - like leaves and wood mulch - are held in the root zone by a vast array of fungi and soil creatures. The foundational work is microscopic and largely ignored or not appreciated. The larger creatures, like earthworms, take over from the beneficial work of protozoa, bacteria, and fungi, and enhance what is being done at the microscopic level.

I want the leaves to accumulate along the fences - free mulch and fertilizer. I want the leaves to coat all three rose gardens. The leaves will look like trash in the spring, wet and soggy, but disappear into the soil and birds' nests. I pile up leaves under the Crepe Myrtle bush, repeatedly, in the fall. I have almost nothing left under the growing bush in the spring, when flowers begin to form, and I have the best flowering Crepe Myrtle in our neighborhood.

We collect vast amounts of cardboard, newspapers, and wood mulch, and use them all. Our goal is not to rake up leaves and haul them away, but to grab our neighbor's work and add it to the compost pile, the rose gardens, and the sunny tomato garden.

Pine needles are a pain until blueberries are planted. Then they are a way to keep the weeds down and the acid level up, just what blueberries want.

I Almost Raked the Leaves Yesterday

"You throw leaves away?"

We are enjoying warm weather and sun rather than the dreadful winter predicted. The lawn is greening up for spring, but the leaves are finally gone from the trees.

Our helper came over for a last effort with the leaves. He mowed the front lawns, mulching the leaves with the grass, which is much neater than trying to rake them. In the back we are keeping them whole and raking them over the gardens near the house and in the back section.

I like the way leaves naturally fall into the mulch and stick there. They will be easily absorbed by soil creatures in the spring. We use excess leaves around the front evergreen bushes, to suppress weeds and feed the soil under those bushes. The evergreens provide good cover for insects and birds, and they are much better than lining up roses against the house.

I have two areas for raking leaves in the front. The crepe myrtle bush has a tepee of leaves at its base, but I will expand the leaf mulch with the ample supply on the driveway. The maple tree will be encircled by roses, so I am adding leaves to the perimeter, to help the soil  and the digging in spring.

In the backyard we want leaves in the compost, over the mulched garden areas, or on the future butterfly-hummingbird area. The beneficial insects book has inspired me to get a wide variety of bee and butterfly plants growing where parasitoid wasps will prosper and do their work.

Leaves are scorned by many organic gardeners for being mostly carbon and low on nitrogen. But what did we learn about carbon, class? Bueller? Bueller? Anyone? Anyone?

Fungi are the heroes of decomposition in the soil, because they feed nutrition and water to the plant roots, in exchange for - carbon from the plants. Fungi need carbon to grow, so autumn leaves are ideal for the health of the soil and the growth of all plants. The soil creatures will sort out what they need, even while we rest in bed, pull up the covers, and roll over for a few more winks.

While you were sleeping I posted another
contribution to Creation Gardening.