Pine Straw Mulch

[coachgrd]

Hello!

I am thinking about making the switch over to pine straw mulch. I've been using the typical mulch (combination of peat moss & wood chips) but it only looks good for a month or so and this is a source of irritation every year.

Having been in South Carolina over Easter, I noticed some very nice landscaped beds with this pine straw mulch and wondered if I might get some better longevity out of it. Do any of you use it and do you typically get more than one season out of it?

Thanks!
Gary

 

[3BPercherons]

Hello!

I am thinking about making the switch over to pine straw mulch. I've been using the typical mulch (combination of peat moss & wood chips) but it only looks good for a month or so and this is a source of irritation every year.

Having been in South Carolina over Easter, I noticed some very nice landscaped beds with this pine straw mulch and wondered if I might get some better longevity out of it. Do any of you use it and do you typically get more than one season out of it?

Thanks!
Gary

If you want it strictly for looks then yes, it will last more than one season (though you may need to refresh with an extra bale or so each year). If you're looking for weed control and moisture retention, though, forget it.

 

[CosmoAU]

We use about 1000 bales of straw and 6-8 tractor trailer loads of mulch at the golf course I maintain.* The mulch keeps it color longer.* We re-do it once per year.* The pine straw looks better to me, but it turns gray quickly and needs to be refreshed more often.

 

[Grandad4]

Like anything else, there are pro's and con's to it. My experience:
Pros... Easy to put down, looks good
Cons... Pricey ($4.00/bale around here), harder to blow leaves out of in the fall, doesn't hold up to any kind of traffic, can have chiggers, etc. if of poor quality.

We've been using it for a couple of years in spite of the drawbacks because it looks good. Needs to be refreshed every year, even more than the alternatives.

 

[dmccarty]

Also pine straw can burn. The city of Raleigh was talking about banning pine straw around houses. I don't know if they passed an ordinance or not.

There have been several fires over the years where pine straw caught on fire and burned down apartment buildings. A month or so back a handful of houses in a subdivision burned down when pine straw caught on fire. It was a windy and the houses were built close together with vinyl siding. The pine straw caught fire and poof. Houses gone.

I never did hear if they found the source but I assume a cigarette did the deed. I know one of the apartment fires was a tossed cigarette.

We put wood chips around the house. If it was up to me it would be gravel. :laughing: We have gravel around half the house for walkways and driveways. My plan was have a 3-4 foot gravel path next to and around the house. But SWMBO nixed my idea.

Later,
Dan

 

[coachgrd]

Also pine straw can burn. The city of Raleigh was talking about banning pine straw around houses. I don't know if they passed an ordinance or not.

There have been several fires over the years where pine straw caught on fire and burned down apartment buildings. A month or so back a handful of houses in a subdivision burned down when pine straw caught on fire. It was a windy and the houses were built close together with vinyl siding. The pine straw caught fire and poof. Houses gone.

I never did hear if they found the source but I assume a cigarette did the deed. I know one of the apartment fires was a tossed cigarette.

We put wood chips around the house. If it was up to me it would be gravel. :laughing: We have gravel around half the house for walkways and driveways. My plan was have a 3-4 foot gravel path next to and around the house. But SWMBO nixed my idea.

Later,
Dan

I actually discussed the gravel idea with my wife but we both agreed that the initial cost would be huge.

 

[Grandad4]

I actually discussed the gravel idea with my wife but we both agreed that the initial cost would be huge.

One of the guys at our church got a deal - donated for free, actually - on about 6 tons of red brick chips to use as mulch at the church. It looks great... will probably last quite a bit longer than any of the organic materials.