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[Jay Cutts <orders@cuttsreviews.com>]

Thanks for the suggestion. We have plenty of  pine needles here and they 
do break down, mostly mechanically, not biologically. They result in a 
deep layer of organic matter under the trees but that layer is very dry 
and not biologically very active.

The pine needles break down because they're small. Wood chips are too 
big and don't do anything. Except immediately after a rain (which 
happens only a handful of times a year) they are bone dry. Your 
suggestion of wetting them down is nice but would last about a day.

I also personally find wood chips a real pain to work around. They make 
weeding difficult (and yes the grasses and other weeds grow up right 
through them) and are uncomfortable to kneel on when working around the 
tree.

Regards,

Jay

Jay Cutts
Director, Cutts Graduate Reviews
Lead Author, Barron's MCAT Prep Book
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(505)-281-0684
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On 5/26/2015 11:06 PM, fuwa fuwa usagi wrote:
> My suggestion, run a intermediate term test.  Mark off a 10x10 area, wet it 
> down and then add a minimum of 2ft of wood chips and let it sit for a 
> year...then dig a test whole in it and see what has happened.  If it has 
> decayed a bit and you have worms and insect activity, as I suspect, add 
> enough mulch to bring it back up to st least 2 ft, and check it again a year 
> later.
>
> The key is, the sheer mass of the wood chips will likely create a micro 
> environment that promotes decay.   Even in the arid areas of the Gila 
> wilderness there is substantial decay underneath 2 ft of pine needles.
>
> This will give you an idea what is truly possible in your area, rather then 
> speculation.
>
> 2-3 years to run a test is nothing in the greater scheme of things.
>
> tfb
>
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