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Tania · August 11, 2014

I try to keep the wood chips mulch layer anywhere between 3" and 6". Tomatoes, peppers, root crops, squash, and brassicas love it. Never had a damaged stem yet, despite the mulch touching the plants.

Yes, wood chips take 3-5 years to break down, and the top layer stays intact almost forever (we are conifer-dominant area - deciduous chips will break down faster) - but that works for me, as it is intended to be mulch

The chips start breaking down quite nicely by the mid summer when they are in direct contact with soil, and there are lots of worms there! The trick with the wood chips is you never want them incorporated / tilled into the soil, as it will tie lots of nitrogen and rob your plants. If they stay on top, this does not happen, as the N is only taken from the thin top layer of soil that is in direct contact with the chips. So the roots are not affected.

It is a different story when you compost the wood chips with coffee grinds and kitchen waste (layering them 3:1 or 5:1 chips to 'greens'). Then the pile heats up almost instantly to very high temperatures and composting process goes much faster.

I was so shocked to see how nice and rich the compost from the wood chips. Very pH neutral, high NPK, lots of organic matter that last and helps to build up soil. Unlike manures and kitchen compost that look and work great but quickly disappear after 3-5 months, and you'll have to do that again in spring. Plus wood chips hold so much water, soil is so nice and moist underneath the mulch even we did not have rain for a month, and tomatoes are under plastic cover and have only been watered once or twice since May (last time in early July).

We no longer to bring manure to our garden. We used to do that (20 cu.yd. load) every spring. It turns into dust by the end of summer. Does not work for me. Too much work for one year benefits.

Tatiana

P.S. These are pics of beans and squash in the thick layer of fresh wood chips mulch.

http://tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/F...2014-07-19.JPG

http://tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/F...-07-19_(3).JPG

August 11, 2014	#21
Tania Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Anmore, BC, Canada Posts: 3,970	I try to keep the wood chips mulch layer anywhere between 3" and 6". Tomatoes, peppers, root crops, squash, and brassicas love it. Never had a damaged stem yet, despite the mulch touching the plants. Yes, wood chips take 3-5 years to break down, and the top layer stays intact almost forever (we are conifer-dominant area - deciduous chips will break down faster) - but that works for me, as it is intended to be mulch The chips start breaking down quite nicely by the mid summer when they are in direct contact with soil, and there are lots of worms there! The trick with the wood chips is you never want them incorporated / tilled into the soil, as it will tie lots of nitrogen and rob your plants. If they stay on top, this does not happen, as the N is only taken from the thin top layer of soil that is in direct contact with the chips. So the roots are not affected. It is a different story when you compost the wood chips with coffee grinds and kitchen waste (layering them 3:1 or 5:1 chips to 'greens'). Then the pile heats up almost instantly to very high temperatures and composting process goes much faster. I was so shocked to see how nice and rich the compost from the wood chips. Very pH neutral, high NPK, lots of organic matter that last and helps to build up soil. Unlike manures and kitchen compost that look and work great but quickly disappear after 3-5 months, and you'll have to do that again in spring. Plus wood chips hold so much water, soil is so nice and moist underneath the mulch even we did not have rain for a month, and tomatoes are under plastic cover and have only been watered once or twice since May (last time in early July). We no longer to bring manure to our garden. We used to do that (20 cu.yd. load) every spring. It turns into dust by the end of summer. Does not work for me. Too much work for one year benefits. Tatiana P.S. These are pics of beans and squash in the thick layer of fresh wood chips mulch. http://tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/F...2014-07-19.JPG http://tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/F...-07-19_(3).JPG __________________ Tatiana's TOMATObase Last edited by Tania; August 11, 2014 at 11:33 AM.