Turning a new leaf

If you're lucky enough to have lots of leaves, this is a great way use them for your gardens.

• Rake up all the leaves you can get.
  
• Mow them with a mower to chop them into small pieces.
• For every cubic yard of material mix in the following:
• 1 cup EM1
• 1 cup molasses
• 5 gallons of water
• Cover with a large tarp and use rocks or logs to hold the tarp down.

Let the material sit for at least two weeks. When you pull back the tarp there will likely be a bunch of white mold on the leaves. The material should also have a sweet/sour smell.

You just make a huge pile of what we call EM1 Bokashi for about $2 in materials.

The fermented leaves can be used as a mulch or incorporated into garden soil to add lots of carbon and beneficial microbes.

If you really get carried away, collect the leaves from neighbors. Just have them bring over tarps of leaves. I am sure they would prefer to have you take them than to have to bring them to the dump. Better yet, teach your neighbors how to turn leaves into a resource and save the landfill space! The worms and your plants will love you for it!