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Re: bark mulch

Linda:

Thanks for the info. Boy, you really don't like shredded cedar, do you?:)

Mike A. (western Oregon, Sunset zone 8)
quincymike@juno.com


On Fri, 4 Apr 1997 14:43:43 -0500 Linda Janicke <Ljanick100@AOL.COM>
writes:
>I know that people say nitrogen depletion should be a problem.  If it
>has
>been a factor in my garden, I sure haven't noticed.  What I have
>noticed is
>that the whole garden, not just certain plants, does better with the
>bark
>mulch.  However, I have clay soil here in zone 6.  It could be that
>other
>soils would present more of a problem.  I also have raised beds which
>dry out
>quickly.  This may be why the garden does better with moisture holding
>ammendments.
>I have tried cocoa hulls mixed in the soil and as a mulch.  The garden
>did
>not do well with that mulch.  I regretted the day I ever tried that
>stuff.
>I have tried shredded cedar mulch (but it wasn't fine shred).  I
>didn't try
>mixing that into the soil.  I used it solely as a mulch.  The weeds
>loved
>shredded cedar. They didn't root in the soil, they rooted in the
>shredded
>cedar and hung on so tight, I had trouble weeding.  Never again will
>shredded
>cedar mulch come into my garden.
>I have tried straw.  It was embarrassing here in suburbia.  It looked
>ridiculous and blew all over the place.  What a mess.
>Well, I will stop running on.  This is all by way of saying that I
>highly
>recommend finely shredded bark mulch and have had no problems with it.
> I
>don't use much fertilizer either.  I depend on compost (finely
>shredded bark
>mulch decomposes quickly) and occasional foliar spray with FoliaGro
>seeweed.
> Oh, one more thing: there is one thing that I have found superior to
>bark
>mulch--ground up leaves.  Ground up leaves are the very best.  I've
>read
>people saying in the garden newsgroup that this also would bind up the
>nitrogen.  But I've never noticed any such problems with ground up
>leaves,
>either.  Also, I garden intensively.  Everything is planted very close
>together.  I'm not even going to tell you how closely I pack things
>in.  You
>wouldn't believe me anyway.  I think Mel's method of planting lots of
>things
>in one space is excellent.
>Sure hope this helps and does no harm.
>
>In a message dated 97-04-03 01:02:24 EST, you write:
>
>> Date:    Wed, 2 Apr 1997 23:09:10 EST
>>  From:    Michael A Arnold <arnoldjm@JUNO.COM>
>>  Subject: Re: bark mulch
>>
>>  Linda:
>>
>>  Thanks for the info. Do you find that the bark depletes the
>nitrogen in
>>  your soil?
>>
>>  Mike A. (western Oregon, Sunset zone 8)
>>  quincymike@juno.com
>>
>
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