North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["William C. Garthright" <billg@inebraska.com>]

> I spread cocoa hull mulch on a number of beds, because it does a 
> terrific job of smothering weed seeds and stopping quake grass.  I 
> bought a couple of bags yesterday to fill in spots that had migrated 
> over the harsh winter.  However, the squirrels beat me to it.


Very interesting - and funny - story. I use a lot of the cocoa hull 
mulch. It works well and isn't hard on the lawnmower like wood chips, 
though it's expensive, even on sale. It's also light-weight, but will 
stay put once watered. But I've never had the squirrels eat it. They dig 
in it sometimes, to hide other food, but they've never touched it other 
than that.

And I've heard different things about its effect on dogs. Some people 
warn against it, but others say there's not enough chemical in the hulls 
to cause a problem. Your experience seems to indicate that dog-owners 
should be wary. I don't have a dog, so I've haven't been concerned about 
it, one way or another.

Next time, I hope you have a camera handy. :-)

Bill
Lincoln, NE (zone 5)

--
In real life, as a nation these days, we can achieve next to nothing. 
But in the Bourne movies just one of us, grim, muscular and photogenic, 
can take on all villains, all at once, and leave them outwitted, dead, 
disgraced. That's a macho fantasy of the highest, purest, most lunatic 
order. - David Louis Edelman