Question Tree Mulch

TerryB

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Greetings all! I am keen on Mark's videos, and have built 2 new raised beds with sheet metal roofing, and filled in with Tree stumps, etc.

After preparing the soil, I decided to plant seeds for beans, peas, beets, and lettuce. 1- days later and the lettuces are peeping through! A start. Then it occured to me that Ineed to mulch the beds, which leadz to my question:

Is it OK/safe to use wood chips as mulch on top of the seedlings? I have access to as much as I want, and have used them in thee orchard for years. The mulch is mostly Monterey Cypress. Any guidance is much appreciated. Cheers!
 

t4ms

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Hi,

I'm not from California so I can't comment on Monterey Cypress wood chips as such. How big are the chips? Over here, wood mulch can have quite large pieces which makes watering seedlings a challenge. The water doesn't reach the roots.

So, if you're going to use a bulky mulch I'd insert some kind of system where you can water the roots of the plants. I upcycle plastic containers for this. They can be easily removed once the plants are well established with strong root systems:

https://sustainablepain.com/watering-a-heavily-mulched-garden-bed-using-upcycled-plastic-containers/

I'm envious that you have access to as much mulch as you want. I'm prepping myself for some guerilla leaf collection in the upcoming weeks. I live in an area with a lot of introduced deciduous trees and I'll be patrolling the neighbourhood roadside gutters with a rake and bag!
 

reeeen4

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I have seen quite a few people use semi-composted wood mulch on garden beds, wood mulch would probably work fine but smaller seeds like carrots and lettuce might have a hard time pushing up through it I would think.
 

TerryB

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Thanks for your reply. I decided to thin it out a bit, and will add more as the seedlings develop. Keep you all posted.
 

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