I have never heard of leaf mulch being a problem in a garden. Olbrich gardens in Madison sells bags of leaf mulch for $5 each and suggests using it in beds and gardens. Obviously you can't pile it up on tomatoes but should make your soil better over time. That's why woods soil is jet black and full of good stuff. IMO

I have never had a problem with my tomatoes when they were mulched with leaves although I did when I did not do that.
Why one earth would you keep pine needles for a campfire?

Yeah, I read later that it should be fine. The first search didn't give me any results here in gardenweb, but google led me to the proper post in gw. Oh, and the pine needles make good kindling, that is what I meant to say.

Thermo-phytic bacteria don't like leaves. Most of the so called cooking going on are the other ingredients not the leaves. Plus leaves layer up and clog your supposed composting. That's why everyone goes to such trouble (and fuel use)to chop them. that way the pieces get small enough to not blow everywhere and cover everything up. they still are not broken down or composted, they're just chopped. Leaves mold. When you throw them around, oxygen gets in and the physical layering is broken so that the mold is unable to work. They should be layered and left alone until nature molds them. There is more ignorance on this subject than any other area on this forum.