Christmas tree mulch

One of the local tree lots mulched the left overs and left them for anyone to pick up. I brought home few five-gallon buckets. I didn't see the trees, but most likely fir and cedar from the smell.

The plan was to spread it around flower & veg gardens, and maybe over some newly seeded parts of the yard.

Any comments about where to use or not use this?

Reply to
Snuffy "Hub Cap" McKinney
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a thin layer on top of the soil should be ok for most perennial gardens. blueberries would probably like it.

once you spread it out and it dries it will season (the harshest oils/resins) will evaporate.

i dunno if it would be strong enough to prevent seeds from sprouting.

the thicker the layer the more potential for trouble, but my gardens could use a lot of organic matter and also i need more elevation so i tend to bury anything i can get my hands on under gardens and then let nature digest it for a few years before i dig it up again to use it. bacteria, fungi, worms and other soil critters can do their thing. :)

if it is free for the taking and you have a truck you can always bring it home and set up a compost pile set up to use it.

if you are really adventurous you can read the humanure handbook (freely available online) and start dry composting your poo/pee for the gardens. in a year or two you'll have the best stuff ever!

songbird

Reply to
songbird

Where I live, tree trimming services and municipal yard waste collection sites provided shredded tree mulch free for the taking. It tends to rot down very quickly indeed, never lasting beyond a single growing season. For that reason I don't find it useful as an ornamental mulch, but it's fine in the annual or vegetable gardens, where what little remains at the end of the season can be tilled in.

You don't want anything too coarse for using over grass seed - if the pieces are too large and heavy, the grass seedlings would not be able to push it aside. So inspect it and use your judgement. You needn't worry about small amounts of mulch changing the soil pH; it usually takes regular use of such materials over time before there's a noticeable effect on pH.

Reply to
Moe DeLoughan

Thanks sb & md. Good to hear about it breaking down as well. That's even bettre. I was glad to run across this lot - mulch is getting pricey these days.

Reply to
Snuffy "Hub Cap" McKinney

Snuffy "Hub Cap" McKinney wrote: ...

i grow it (chop and drop) and some friends bring me stuff from their firewood splitting and leaf raking. i give them veggies in return. working out well so far. :)

songbird

Reply to
songbird

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