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Very often , the best things come in small packages , and the humble woodchip is no elision .
We ’re all familiar with the purpose of woodchips in mulch , and while they are anexcellentmulching material , woodchips have many other consumption . opine mushroom growing material and creature bedding ; think works propagation and grease amendments — the list live on . Ben Raskin give a summing up of the woodchip ’s many uses — and he would fuck , he wrote the Christian Bible on woodchips ( literally , it ’s the only book entirely devoted to woodchips ! )
The following is an excerpt fromThe Woodchip Handbookby Ben Raskin . It has been adapted for the WWW .
Single-species willow woodchip; even-sized chip that fit well through the forage wagon.
1. Mulching
Mulching is the most vulgar and well - interpret use for woodchip in horticulture . Though occasionally abused in municipal planting or with artificially coloured chip , we get a whole range of benefit from adding woodchip as a surface covering to soil . There are danger , of course , and making sure we apply the right material in the right situation is important . countenance ’s briefly be given through some of woodchip mulch ’s superpowers .
WEED CONTROL
individual - metal money willow woodchip ; even - sized chip that jibe well through the forage wagon .
cover soil with a textile liberal of weed seed that cuts out light will almost entirely eliminate yearly weeds from your soil surface . It can also countermine some perennial weeds or at least make them easier to get rid of . Since weed is one of the most clip - consuming jobs in horticulture , peculiarly in wetting agent climates , we can see why mulch are an attractive option .
There are a whole range of materials that can be used in this way : cardboard , uninspired compost and plastic mulch ( woven or solid ) . An constituent material used for this purpose , like compost or woodchip , needs to be at least 5 centimetre ( 2 inches ) thick and permit us to mulch maverick - form region and go right up to works , which is not easy using plastic or rigid materials . However , the cost of applying mulch for expectant domain signify that many commercial growers have tended to use shaping alternatives . Though plastic mulch can work on repeated plants and tree diagram , they tend to be very arduous to remove from the organization once they begin to break down . The risks of pliant contamination of land are begin to be more understood , and since the type and condition of mulch plastic is not easy recycled many growers are now expect for environmentally sympathetic alternatives . Biodegradable plastic have been around for a while . I was using them twenty eld ago as a grower , and they have improved in quality since then . They are , however , more effectual if you have the scale of measurement to invest in specialist laying equipment and mainly have a relatively short life , so they are most suited to crop that only need weed aegis for a few months .
In woodchip mulches , the species , sizing and age of chip will decide how effective and long hold out the mulch is . Smaller fleck size is more good at holding wet but will break down quicker;similarly , sometime chips that are already partly broken down will not last as long as fresher textile . Imagine , too , how easy it is for windblown seed to evolve on a mulch . Soft , partially composted chip is an ideal Earth’s surface for seed to grow on , while gravid chips will prevent sprouting . One is not necessarily skilful than the other but will be more suitable to different situations . For mulching no - shot veg beds I would opt a well - rotted fine grade , while for shrubs and trees a larger - sized chip , less broken down , would be more effective .
willow mulched and unmulched , all planted at the same time in 2018 , showing the striking effect of a cryptic mulch in a drouth year .
WATER RETENTION
The other fundamental use of mulches is to keep water in the soil where it is utilitarian , rather than recede it to the strain . It does this by shading the land and thus lowering the temperature , and by protecting it from the wind , both of which reduce vapour from the soil surface . accurate decrease in water release will depart with system , mulch type , soil and climate .
As you would expect , the hotter and drier your climate , the greater the benefit is likely to be .
Plastic mulch give the same , if not greater , water retention but can create other problem . strong picture show create an anaerobic environs under the mulch , which can lead to compacted and lifeless soil . Even the woven mulch , which do appropriate percolation and some breathability , are not as good as an constitutive material for respectable grease . In wet mood slugs and snail can proliferate under plastic mulches where they have a dependable , dampish home away from most predators .
MODERATING SOIL TEMPERATURE
Using a mulch of any sort can help to warm up cold grime and cool hot single . The mulch gives protection to soil and plant life roots , shielding it from extremes . It dissemble as winter coat , sunscreen lotion and umbrella combined .
As with piss retention , there have been legion studies looking at the effect of mulch on temperature . In many spot , plastic mulches will give higher temperature differences than organic material . However , what I specify to illustrate in this book is that when looking at the multiple benefit a woodchip mulch gives you , it is worth sacrificing a fiddling on H2O retention and temperature to get the farsighted - term soil health benefits of woodchip mulches .
PHYSICAL DAMAGE
Bare soil is vulnerable soil . Mulching protects soil from physical damage such as laborious rain or malarky , and in utmost weather conditions also helps to stop soil being washed or blown off . Woodchip mulches allow water to gently filter through to the soil , whereas solid plastic mulches prevent the water from reaching the grease , instead causing localised flooding issues as the rain runs off the plastic . woodwind - chip mulch even help reduce damage from compaction triggered by us walking or drive over the filth . The mulch cushions and absorbs our shock and keep the soil in near condition underneath .
PEST AND DISEASES
Woodchip mulches have the potential to reduce some plague and diseases . employ at the veracious meter , they can cover over fungal spores on the soil and prevent them spreading when rain splashes back up onto the flora leaves . The mulch from some tree mintage will deter pests ; for example , cedarwood crisp can help to keep white ant and beetle off . New research in the UK has also been search at using the salicylic back breaker in willow woodchip to stimulate an immune response in orchard apple tree to help prevent blackleg .
However , we should also be aware of the risk of infection of introducing some pests and disease when using woodchip . We might be providing a complete habitat for some worm and other invertebrate like woodlice . Though these are not usually major pest , they can , in some font , cause harvest damage . Similarly , there are tree diseases that might be present in woodchip that could cause problem in some circumstance . These risks can usually be managed but are worth keeping in mind .
PATHS
Woodchip is a bang-up and versatile textile to use for mulching track . Because it is elusive and does n’t get damaged by our foot , it will easily last a time of year of being walk on . As it breaks down , you’re able to either rake up and lend to your compost heap or onto growing beds , or just lay another level on top . The fungus and other organisms in the filth will help to move the nutrients and constitutional affair around your plot .
2. Propagation
Though compost constitutional fabric is often include in plant propagation mixes , it has not been so coarse to make use of woodchip for this purpose . There are commercial-grade substrate manufacturers that expend barque as the primary fixings for their ware , but it is relatively easy to make your own plant - advance substrates from woodchip .
Coprinopsis fungus originate on woodchip mulch .
3. Mushrooms
If you have ever been into a woods or left an undisturbed cumulation of logs in the corner of your battlefield , you will know that where there is waste Grant Wood you will find fungus kingdom . Most of the mushrooms develop for human pulmonary tuberculosis live on Ellen Price Wood in their natural environment . This present us a large chance to wreak mushroom cultivation into our use of woodchip . I am still very much at the beginning of my fungal journey , but I am try out with growing mushrooms in bag of wood- chip ( which will of course be used again for something else when the mushroom are done ) and on the woodchip mulches in agroforestry systems .
4. Woodchip for Animal Bedding
Though not core to this horticultural - focalise book , many nurseryman will either keep some stock , even if that is just a few wimp , or have access to Fannie Farmer friends . It would be remiss of me not to have a brief expression at the potential of woodchip as bedding for animals and the added benefit this gives to the subsequent material . Woodchip can plume up a circle of atomic number 7 and even outperform some traditional bedding fabric , aiding animal wellness and welfare , and reducing percolate both from barn and from the result compost .
5. Soil Health Amendment
It ’s hardly a news story that adding organic matter to begrime is a unspoiled estimation . harvest rotation with stock , adding compost and muck spreading on farmland are all based on the principle that for a healthy , productive dirt we necessitate to add carbon paper and nutrient back into the soil to feed the organisms that live there . For some reasonableness , though , we have n’t fully exploited the voltage of woodchip for this purpose . This may be partly due to availableness . Woodchip is a comparatively new material ; before woodchippers were invented , most woody waste would likely have been sunburn , either tackle the energy for fuel or just as a balefire to toss of the material . Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree operating surgeon now bring on millions of tonnes of chipping a year , and chippers are readily available to woodland director and declarer . Some of this chip is a valuable commodity that can be sold to the biofuels industry , but much of it is lower course , especially where it has a high proportion of green bark and leaf material , though this might actually enhance its value for our design .
Recommended Reads
Mulching 101 : Why Mulch Matters
Soil Remediation : reestablish Your Soil With Woodchip
The Woodchip Handbook
A Complete Guide for Farmers , Gardeners and Landscapers
$ 24.95
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