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- Dec 9, 2017
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Link to give credit and to view larger pictures.
https://gab.com/Schaafcraig/posts/110726244142013533
The first kind of mulch I want us to consider is a LIVING MULCH. If you look at the fifth photo it shows you two very intensively planted carrot beds. This photo is from many years ago when I was farming. There is a carrot on those beds about every 4.5"x1.5". You could never achieve this kind of density with a hay or wood chip mulch. But it is not needed. The carrots themselves create a dense canopy over the soil that protects it from the erosion of rain or wind. If you look at the second photo the two crops that are first are Baby Lima beans on the left, and Celery on the right. Both of these plants when I first transplanted them I needed the soil to be warm. So I didn’t want a wood chip or hay mulch, that would have cooled the soil. Now that the weather has warmed up and summer has set in they are large enough now to be a living mulch.
The second mulch I want to consider is a COMPOST MULCH. Many people don’t consider compost as a mulch, but I do. I was just mentioning how I wanted the soil to warm early in the season for the Celery. Just leaving the soil surface exposed to the sun will help warm it, but putting a layer of dark compost over the surface will help it much more. Now that the warming is not so important I could bring in another mulch. But the Celery is getting large enough now it isn’t really needed. But this brings us to another important point. Sometimes certain mulches are chosen for their effect on the microbiome in the soil around the plants. Grass mulches will tend to make the soil bacteria dominate. Wood chips will make it more fungal dominate. Different plants definitely have preferences that you will need to discern over time.
The next mulch is a WOOD CHIP MULCH. This topic is extremely nuanced. When you are discussing wood chips with someone you immediately need to discern the quality of wood chips they are using. If I take lumber, like you would build furniture out of, and chip it up, the carbon to nitrogen ratio (C:N) is around 700:1. That means there is very little nitrogen present to help decompose the complex carbon chains to feed the soil. If you use these kinds of chips and stir them into your soil your plants will be struggling for many years getting enough nitrogen for their growth. Now the highest quality wood chip you can obtain is made from the small branches. If you chip a branch that is 2 3/4" and smaller the C:N ratio is like 40:1. That is the same ratio of a properly made compost pile. If you stir these into your soil it is like adding compost and will help feed you plants. These chips are referred to as Ramial. If I could only do one thing to feed my soil it would be the Ramial. Now if you look at the first photo you will see a 4' wide service path that dissect my garden in half. This is for me to bring in large garden carts when larger loads are taken in or out. I have hundreds of feet of these service paths going through different areas of my garden. I mulch these paths with hardwood chips made from oak tree tops. They are not Ramial. They do have more carbon, but they are not going on the beds. If you look at the third photo you will see some newly planted Black Berries to the left, they have high quality Ramial. If you look across the hay path from them you will find Asparagus with a similar chip that is on the service paths. I want to say one more important thing about chips. Avoid pine if you can. A small percentage in the mix will not be a problem, but pine is decomposed by brown rot fungus. These fungus are not very friendly to garden plants. Pine environments tend to become sterile over time. Hardwood chips are decomposed by white rot fungus. These are extremely beneficial to your garden.
If you look at the second photo you will see that my work paths between beds are mulched with a HAY MULCH. This is so pleasant to kneel on. Whenever I mulch over a cover crop it will be with a thick hay mulch.
The last mulch I will talk about is a ROCK MULCH. My post yesterday discussed this. It is the ultimate if you want to warm the soil and maintain that warmth. My sweet potatoes are loving it.
I hope this information is helpful. God bless your gardens!
https://gab.com/Schaafcraig/posts/110726244142013533
The first kind of mulch I want us to consider is a LIVING MULCH. If you look at the fifth photo it shows you two very intensively planted carrot beds. This photo is from many years ago when I was farming. There is a carrot on those beds about every 4.5"x1.5". You could never achieve this kind of density with a hay or wood chip mulch. But it is not needed. The carrots themselves create a dense canopy over the soil that protects it from the erosion of rain or wind. If you look at the second photo the two crops that are first are Baby Lima beans on the left, and Celery on the right. Both of these plants when I first transplanted them I needed the soil to be warm. So I didn’t want a wood chip or hay mulch, that would have cooled the soil. Now that the weather has warmed up and summer has set in they are large enough now to be a living mulch.
The second mulch I want to consider is a COMPOST MULCH. Many people don’t consider compost as a mulch, but I do. I was just mentioning how I wanted the soil to warm early in the season for the Celery. Just leaving the soil surface exposed to the sun will help warm it, but putting a layer of dark compost over the surface will help it much more. Now that the warming is not so important I could bring in another mulch. But the Celery is getting large enough now it isn’t really needed. But this brings us to another important point. Sometimes certain mulches are chosen for their effect on the microbiome in the soil around the plants. Grass mulches will tend to make the soil bacteria dominate. Wood chips will make it more fungal dominate. Different plants definitely have preferences that you will need to discern over time.
The next mulch is a WOOD CHIP MULCH. This topic is extremely nuanced. When you are discussing wood chips with someone you immediately need to discern the quality of wood chips they are using. If I take lumber, like you would build furniture out of, and chip it up, the carbon to nitrogen ratio (C:N) is around 700:1. That means there is very little nitrogen present to help decompose the complex carbon chains to feed the soil. If you use these kinds of chips and stir them into your soil your plants will be struggling for many years getting enough nitrogen for their growth. Now the highest quality wood chip you can obtain is made from the small branches. If you chip a branch that is 2 3/4" and smaller the C:N ratio is like 40:1. That is the same ratio of a properly made compost pile. If you stir these into your soil it is like adding compost and will help feed you plants. These chips are referred to as Ramial. If I could only do one thing to feed my soil it would be the Ramial. Now if you look at the first photo you will see a 4' wide service path that dissect my garden in half. This is for me to bring in large garden carts when larger loads are taken in or out. I have hundreds of feet of these service paths going through different areas of my garden. I mulch these paths with hardwood chips made from oak tree tops. They are not Ramial. They do have more carbon, but they are not going on the beds. If you look at the third photo you will see some newly planted Black Berries to the left, they have high quality Ramial. If you look across the hay path from them you will find Asparagus with a similar chip that is on the service paths. I want to say one more important thing about chips. Avoid pine if you can. A small percentage in the mix will not be a problem, but pine is decomposed by brown rot fungus. These fungus are not very friendly to garden plants. Pine environments tend to become sterile over time. Hardwood chips are decomposed by white rot fungus. These are extremely beneficial to your garden.
If you look at the second photo you will see that my work paths between beds are mulched with a HAY MULCH. This is so pleasant to kneel on. Whenever I mulch over a cover crop it will be with a thick hay mulch.
The last mulch I will talk about is a ROCK MULCH. My post yesterday discussed this. It is the ultimate if you want to warm the soil and maintain that warmth. My sweet potatoes are loving it.
I hope this information is helpful. God bless your gardens!
