What color mulch?

[sswaring]

Originally Posted by eloyfan

Pine straw is also a no-no.

Why is pinestraw a no-no? It is highly acidic which is very good for our azaleas.

When I moved to NY I raked the pinestraw from my hemlocks into mulch piles to put on my beds. My husband told me not to do that...I said "Why not, this is what we did in NC." He said "Don't be ridiculous!" and paid a lot of money for truckloads of shredded hardwood.

Now we are divorced and he lives in Cary...just a few months ago he told me what a great idea it is to use the pinestraw as a free, natural, healthy mulch! He thinks he invented it!

[frankpc]

I use pinestraw, primarily because we have large wooded areas that are a mix of pine and hardwoods.
Some folks are concerned about pinestraw because it burns rather easily. Raleigh considered a ban in certain areas after the townhome fire a few years ago.
Shredded mulch also tends to decompose and helps with soil composition and pinestraw does not.
The NC Coop folks actually believe peat moss has limited usefulness and much prefer compost. Peat moss does help retain moisture and has some usefulness in sandy soils which are pretty atypical in the Triangle.

Frank

[RaleighLass]

Originally Posted by sswaring

Why is pinestraw a no-no? It is highly acidic which is very good for our azaleas.

Now we are divorced and he lives in Cary...just a few months ago he told me what a great idea it is to use the pinestraw as a free, natural, healthy mulch! He thinks he invented it!

Thanks for the laugh!

[JQ Public]

Originally Posted by sswaring

Why is pinestraw a no-no? It is highly acidic which is very good for our azaleas.

When I moved to NY I raked the pinestraw from my hemlocks into mulch piles to put on my beds. My husband told me not to do that...I said "Why not, this is what we did in NC." He said "Don't be ridiculous!" and paid a lot of money for truckloads of shredded hardwood.

Now we are divorced and he lives in Cary...just a few months ago he told me what a great idea it is to use the pinestraw as a free, natural, healthy mulch! He thinks he invented it!

Pinestraw is good as far as weed prevention etc, but from what I remember it can be a fire hazard especially when put right up against a house.