Welcome to Homestead Sunday, where we share what we have learned, what we do on a regular basis, and what projects we are building, rebuilding or working on. Who are we? We are a three generation family living on six acres in South Eastern Texas.
And while we have only been in Texas a short time, we have had the homestead mentality and lifestyle for quite a few years. Starting out with our time living in Montana. And, although we are not experts in any way, I hope that what we share with you with this series is helpful, as well as inspirational for you and your own homestead journey. Or even with your own home and yard in the suburbs. Because to homestead is an much an action as it is a lifestyle.
Often when building, working, and managing a garden or garden space,
soil amendments are needed. They can always be purchased. But if you take a look around you can often get organic materials for free, sometimes right in your own yard. Come and take a look at our leaf managing!
And in particular I am talking about leaves!
We have a lot of them on our property and this year we have been much better about using them and keeping them under control. Around here the leaves begin falling at the end of summer. Many are simply dry from summer heat and they float down little by little. Then as summer heat turns to a milder autumn heat, the dropping of leaves quickens. At that point we have already been raking for a few weeks, small piles of leaves, but the raking usually begins around the end of September. And continues through Christmas!
Some days our mindset is "please, no more raking!"
But when it is all said and done, those leaves have much more value being used in the garden than letting them blow away with the wind. And honestly I have found that a short time raking each day is much easier and preferred over taking a whole day on the weekend. But how do we store so many raked up leaves? That is the whole point of today's Homestead Sunday #13. Because around here raking up the leaves is not a once and done task. So let's explore some of the ways the leaves are used and stored.
In the first few weeks of leaf season, they are raked up and used as mulch.
We start with the garden beds that have finished producing for the year. They will break down over the winter and add to the soil base for next spring's planting. That thick layer of leaves also helps keep the weeds at bay. Which is a big help, because in gardening zone 9a/b weeds grow all year long! We do not have a freeze that will kill off any weeds or even any bugs for that matter. And while we have a handle on some of the bugs with so many birds on the property, it's those weeds that I do not look forward to pulling before being able to plant seeds next spring.
After the beds have been mulched,
we have a couple of leaf silos to store leaves in so they will compost down. They are in the garden, and available close at hand. Giving me a supply of mulched leaves to pull from when working the garden beds before planting begins. But this year we seem to have more leaves if that is even possible. Or maybe what we actually have is more open time to observe that there are lots of leaves to rake up. Since we are now two years on the property and most of the urgent and emergency fixes have been fixed or completed. Making it easier to have a really good look at the land and see what needs done as well as how to proceed for the best outcomes.
We could have gone to the farm and garden store and purchased more wire,
to make additional silos. But as frugal fortune has it, bagged leaves compost just as well and a box of leaf bags is a fraction of the price of even a single roll of wire. So we have been bagging up the leaves and just might have to pick up a second box of bags! Why is saving all these leaves important? Well it turns out that leaf mold (which is the official name for composted leaves, with nothing to do with actual mold.) is one of the best (and did I mention, that it is practically free?) soil amendments you can add to your garden! Which makes it perfect for the frugal homesteader like us. My guess is, your garden or garden beds could also benefit from leaf mold.
Last year we were faced with so many challenges that needed immediate attention or repair,
that most of the leaves got away from us. As spring arrived for planting, I had no composted materials to add to the beds or cover planted seeds while they sprouted. I knew at that point raking, and composting all those leaves was a priority come fall! Purchasing compost can be a problem for many especially if you live where poison ivy grows or the compost was made where poison ivy grows. Through no fault of the retail store, sometimes bags of compost can contain poison ivy. Where we live is definitely poison ivy country. and we have family members who are quite allergic, including our young grandson. So bagged compost is something I never buy for our garden.
But we have an additional reason for needing so much compost.
All the sand and clay in our soil. While sand and clay are fine for the large trees that have growing on this land for decades. It does not grow a healthy food garden. Our outcomes are still quite poor. It is a good thing we do not need to actually survive on the food we are able to grow currently. Building up the soil is needed to be able to grow what we plant and have a good harvest. When we first moved here I wondered why there were not very many family gardens since this gardening zone allows gardening the year round. But now I know. It takes several years to change the soil from sand and clay to a rich loom that will grow enough food to feed your family. Which is why we are talking leaves, my friends!
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