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| I thought it would be a good idea to have my kids "harvest" the rotten tree trunks and branches in the forest behind our new house into mulch, because the soil in the forest is black and the soil around my house is pathetic. The decomposed wood easily crumbles into chunks 2" and smaller. Should I be worried about termites or other bugs in Michigan (the exterior of my house is not wood), or should I somehow cure the mulch, or just use it in my compost. It it a tempting source of mulch but I don't want to use it if I'm going to create problems around my house. Thanks in advance to anyone who has some knowledge about this. |
Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by garystpaul z4 MN (My Page) on Mon, Aug 13, 12 at 12:29
| I just put a lot of a mostly decomposed tree stump (6" diameter, roughly, from dead cherry tree) through my shredder and into the compost heap. it looked very rich to me and I don't anticipate problems of any kind. I also wouldn't hesitate to use it as a mulch, except that some of the pieces (bark, e.g.) were on the large side. |
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| g'day julie, we shouldn't take from the habitat, man does enough damage there already, whatever is in the forest belongs there as part of a working system. source you mulch/compost/humus elsewhere, garden centers sell products that will help or just using green spoilt hay mulches will certainly do the job, mulches such as spoilt lucerne hay or sugar cane mulch, mushroom compost from the farm or mixed where it is available. len |
Here is a link that might be useful: lens straw bale garden
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- Posted by fairfield8619 8 N La. (My Page) on Wed, Aug 15, 12 at 1:52
| I think it much better to scrape some OM from the nearby forest than to pump more pollution into to atmosphere while driving to get more. How did it get to the garden center? By vehicle no doubt, which just increased the pollution even more. |
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- Posted by toxcrusadr (My Page) on Wed, Aug 15, 12 at 10:33
| len has a good point, but I think moderation in all things is the key. A little harvesting here and there without taking it all is probably not going to damage the ecosystem. Note, we've been putting out forest fires for decades, so many places have more wood on the ground than they 'naturally' would. We've already disturbed the ecosystem. Besides fossil fuel, one has to wonder where the stuff at the store came from. Cutting down a forest, perhaps? Maybe small borrowing from nearby is actually more sustainable. |
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- Posted by darth_weeder z7 NY (My Page) on Wed, Aug 15, 12 at 19:21
| not to get technical Len, shouldn't spoilt hay be left in the fields where it came from to replenish those fields? Where does it end or even start? If the OP was talking about slashing/burning the woods behind her house I would agree but to take rotten stumps and fallen branches is not a crime but a smart use of local "products". Would buying peat moss from a 1000 miles away be better? It's a slippery slope and I would like to add that I truly enjoy reading and respect your posts. |
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