A big old oak tree in the yard adds structure to the landscape, shade and wind protection for your home, and plenty of leaves to rake in the fall. Don't consider that last point as a negative, though. Dried oak leaves are a free source of organic matter that can enhance your garden soil, increasing your yield of vegetables and improving growth of flowers, shrubs and trees. With a little preparation, you don't even need to wait for oak leaves to process through a compost pile; add them directly to the soil in the fall.
Rake fallen leaves into a pile with a leaf rake. If you have oak trees in several areas of the yard, rake leaves onto a tarp and drag them to one pile near the garden or planting bed that you want to amend.
Spread the pile out with the rake so it is no more than a few inches deep.
Run over the leaves with a lawn mower several times, taking them up with the bag on the the last pass, if you have a bagging option.
Deposit the chopped oak leaves onto your garden bed and around plantings, in a layer up to 4 inches deep.
Work the chopped oak leaves into the soil with a tiller or shovel in an unplanted bed, turning them into the soil 4 to 6 inches deep.
Add 4 to 5 pounds of blood meal per 1,000 square feet or 1 pound of synthetic nitrogen fertilizer per 1,000 square feet to the soil to help break down the chopped leaves.
Incorporate the chopped oak leaves into the soil outside the root balls of perennials and the drip lines of shrubs and trees using a hoe. Work carefully, so as not to disturb the roots or pile leaves against plants' stems or trunks.
Things You Will Need
- Leaf rake
- Lawn mower
- Tiller or shovel
- Nitrogen fertilizer
- While fresh oak leaves have an acidic pH level, from 4.5 to 4.7, as they break down in the soil they become neutral to very slightly alkaline and do not lead to acidic soil, according to Oregon State University Extension.
- Any type of healthy deciduous leaf -- except walnut and oleander -- can be used as a soil amendment, mulch or component in compost.
- For small amounts of leaves, a leaf vac with shredder can collect and finely chop fallen oak leaves.
- Oak leaves take longer to break down in the soil than other types of leaves and the nitrogen in blood meal helps speed the process, increasing the activity of the microorganisms in the soil responsible for decomposition.
- Don't incorporate leaves from diseased trees into your soil.
- Don't try to shred wet leaves.
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