Store or Use Leaves as Mulch

• 1). Rake dry leaves and place into heavy-duty black garbage bags. Shred the leaves with a shredder or lawn mower if possible before bagging to reduce the number of bags. Place the bags in a dry place such as a garage or enclosed porch. Use the leaves as brown material during the winter as you add kitchen scraps to the compost pile.
  
  
• 2). Place leaves into an enclosed leaf bin. Wet down and add more leaves as they settle. Use the leaves as needed or leave until spring.
  
  
• 3). Pile leaves around plants to provide winter protection for roots. Put fencing around plants to hold leaves in place to provide insulation from harsh weather. Rake away from the plants in the spring and put into bags to be used as compost.
  
  
• 4). Place a thick layer of leaves over your empty vegetable garden or flower beds. Wet thoroughly, add fencing or cover with plastic to keep them from blowing away. Till into the soil in the spring.
  
  

Improve Poor Soil with Trench Composting

• 1). Dig a 12-inch-deep trench. Place 3 to 6 inches of branches, sticks or other coarse material into the bottom.
  
  
• 2). Add 6 inches of shredded leaves. Add 1 inch of manure or rich garden soil.
  
  
• 3). Repeat the layers until the trench is mounded up 3 inches above the top. It sinks as the leaves decompose. By spring, you have humus-rich soil for planting.