Can leaves be directly buried in the soil to be used as fertilizer? Is it effective to compost leaves directly?

Can leaves be buried directly in the soil to be used as fertilizer?

This article introduces the small experience of using leaves buried directly in the soil as fertilizer for green plant maintenance. Let's learn about it together.

Can leaves be buried directly in the soil to be used as fertilizer?

Leaves can indeed be reused as fertilizer, especially the leaves of fruit trees, which can improve the structure of the soil when placed in it. For fresh leaves, it is recommended to chop them up before putting them in the soil. They can ferment in the soil, but it might be quite slow, taking approximately 5-15 days or so.

When growing flowers and plants, we often use soil and fertilizer. Only with enough fertile organic soil can plants grow smoothly, bloom, bear fruit, and become more lush.

Can leaves buried in the ground be used as fertilizer?

During maintenance, decomposed leaves are a good type of organic fertilizer and can also be used directly for growing flowers. Decomposed leaves and dry leaves can be used directly for growing flowers. These plant leaves can be fermented into fertilizer to provide nutrients for the plants.

However, it must be noted that only fully decomposed leaves can be used. Especially when planting potted plants with small pots and small plants, they must be fully decomposed before use, otherwise, it can easily burn the roots and cause yellow leaves.

How to ferment leaves into fertilizer

The process is simple. If making leaf fertilizer at home, you can directly put the collected leaves or pine needles in a large pot.

Then, layer the soil and leaves, using ordinary garden soil. After that, water it to promote faster decomposition and fermentation.

When fermenting these leaves, you can add a bit of water. Occasionally sprinkling water on them to increase the soil's moisture can make the leaves decompose and mature faster.

Usually, after about three months, it can be used directly for growing flowers, such as orchids or hanging plants, or as flower fertilizer. Because the leaf soil not only contains humus but also many nutrients and trace elements, it can supplement the nutrients lacking in flowers and make the soil looser, more fertile, and breathable.

How to use rotten leaves as flower fertilizer

For some large potted plants, a small amount of rotten leaves can be used as a base fertilizer. Place them at the bottom of the pot, but keep the plant roots away from these leaves to avoid burning the roots.

During fermentation, the heat generated may affect the growth of the plants. As long as the pot is large enough, the soil is sufficient, and the leaves are kept away from the roots, adding some rotten leaves should not be a problem.

If you want to plant flowers and plants, you can spread these rotten leaves at the bottom of the flower soil. Especially in rooftop gardens, flower beds, and flowerpots.

You can first spread a thin layer of garden soil, then add a 3-4 cm thick layer of leaves. Finally, cover it with a few centimeters of soil. This way, it won't affect the growth of the plants when growing flowers.

The small knowledge of using leaves buried directly in the soil as fertilizer introduced above hopes to provide you with some help after reading this article!