Healthy soil and sustainable growing

[Pumpkin Lady <pumpkingal@clearwire.net>]

Sorry, this was originally under a topic I wasn't following 
so it just sat around until now.

mark/mcoldiron wrote:

> I have questions about mulch?  It's so windy here until the end of June, 
> that anything other than wood chips will just blow away.  Can I use wood 
> chips for mulch?  If so, what will that do when I plow them under each year? 

Mark, I live in a pretty windy part of Texas, and you'd be 
surprised how well grass and hay will stay on the ground 
even in 50mph wind. Just water it well when you put it down. 
Test a spot if you don't think it will work. I think you'll 
be surprised. I started with shredded paper and was really 
shocked at how well it stayed down once I soaked it.

You can use wood chips for mulch, but they won't necessarily 
break down and give you a lot of nutrients - and they cost 
money. Grass clippings don't.

As for what you do with them when you plow...you don't 
actually have to plow every year if you use beds small 
enough to reach into, but if you absolutely must, why not 
rake them over to one side? Then you can spread them back 
out and not have to buy more.

Morgan