Wood Chips vs Leaf Mulch for Back to Eden Garden
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- Опубліковано 20 сер 2024
- We are switching from wood chips over to leaf mulch in the areas we plant. As the leaf mulch breaks down it will replace some key nutrients that the wood chips are unable to replace. Please like and subscribe.
Hey Eric, How about an update on your home, utility costs, efficiency, any issues and overall comfort.
Yes please
Hey, I will certainly see if I can make one. In the mean time I can tell you we are VERY pleased with the house. I love the sealed attic so its basically the same temp as the rest of the house. Our utility cost have been very low. Electricity is between 45 and 150 a month. Most months its been right around 110, and that's keeping the house 73 degrees in the day and 71 at night. We use about 230 dollars of propane a year for hot water and heat. So all it all I am very happy with the utility bills. The only thing I think I would change is I would have liked the front porch to have been several feet wider.
Eric, looks like your forecast for next week is frosty. Hope you’re all well, thanks for the video.
Hey Tom, yes we are supposed to get some pretty cold weather and possibly 3-9 inches of snow. The forecast keeps changing! lol We spent some time getting the chickens coop all prepped today. We added some more leaf mulch and made sure there were no drafts. Threw em a few sunflower heads to fight the boredom, in case they don't get out for the next few days.
Free compost 😲 you got it made Eric.
Here in the UK local councils charge to collect 'green waste' then sell the composted material back to the public .. 😵💫 I'm not one of them by the way .. 😉
atvb t ..
Hey Tadpole, Yes it really is nice. I got about 9 truck loads of woodchips dropped off on my land when they were clearing the power lines a few years back. That was really nice. But the last time they cleared the lines I wasn't as lucky. Chip drop hasn't ever worked out for me, so this is a great resource if you do a Back to Eden Garden. I am currently adding about 25 cubic yards of mulch a year. The soil is improving nicely and at some point, I should be able to back off on the amount add each year. But for now, the county compost facility is a HUGE blessing!!!
I don’t garden much except tomatoes since I refuse to eat store bought tomatoes when I can get real ones grown in a garden, but like you I can get composted yard waste from the city in unlimited quantities. Since I’m in Texas they call it dillo-dirt but it’s just leaf and grass clippings that have been composted in huge mounds for over a year. I use it as mulch in my flower beds and it works great. Plus it’s a lot cheaper than buying bags of chopped bark or other commercial material. So I’m not sure if I’m being environmentally friendly or just cheap.
LOL, Nothing wrong with being BOTH! If they want to get rid of that dillo-dirt, they might need to change the name. I got a dillo in my garden one time, and the amount of damage he did in just a few hours was astonishing. They are not garden friendly!
Happy New Year. Miss you buddy. I've been doing a combo wood chip and leaf mulch for a while and am happy with the results. I also make my own compost tea in a 55g barrel with yard and garden waste that is super easy and very effective in nutrient replenishment. I don't buy fertilizer any more other than the what I add just before planting (blood, bone, epsom salt, ground egg shell, borax). I started planting Russian Comfrey last year as a nitrogen booster around trees and hope to harvest some leaves for salve this year.
Hey Jim, it’s great to hear from you. I have been thinking about starting some comfrey to use as fodder for my chickens. I want to get them off of as much grain as I can. They free range most of the time and seem to prefer finding most of their food that way. Right now the 6 of them go through a 50lbs sack in a little over a month. I give them veggies from the garden and I grow some giant Russian sun flowers too. I toss a head of seeds to em every now and then during the winter. But cherry tomatoes are by far their favorite. This year we are going to plant some exclusively for the chickens! I really enjoy the Back to Eden method of gardening. I can go all the heavy work in the winter when it’s not hot and I am not as busy. Then I can grow the garden in the spring and summer but not be so consumed by it that I can’t enjoy the nice weather playing with the family.
So I’m also in Arkansas zone 8 . I have a question ? I’ve never planted anything in my life . I’m older and wiser now , so - when planting fruit trees , should I mulch around the trees ? Anyone ?