Cool photos. So am I reading this correctly? The 2006 leaves that you use as a mulch for the 2007 crop left the nitrogen deficiency shown in the photo? What was the difference in the leaves for the 2007 and 2009 crops? Different amounts of leaves? Different sources? I wouldn't think of dry, brown tree leaves as having all that much nitrogen.

Thanks for posting.

The fall of 2006 leaves were incorporated (not applied as a mulch) into the soil at the end of October and within a couple of weeks the ground froze. I seeded in the spring of 2007 and where the leaves had been incorporated there was that nitrogen deficiency. When I did seed it was almost like seeding directly into the leaves as there was little to no decomposition evident.

In the fall of 2008 we stopped applying anything to that field in mid September and allowed it to be fallow for the rest of the year. I planted this spring (2009) and no N deficiency showed up. We did have some reduced crop vigor where the deilivery trucks traveled but I am going to guess that is a compaction issue.

The leaves themselves have little N and when incorporated into the soil the nitrogen that was in the soil became "tied up" so that once the seed germinated the plants became stunted. They never did recover and yields were poor in that area. We are talking 50 to 75 truckloads of various types of leaves from a town. Same thing happened in a different field for 2007/2008. I'm a slow learner. :)

Lloyd