Mulch.

badmomma · #1 05-23-2010, 02:05 AM

I got an idea for getting some free mulch. Contact a local tree trimmer company about getting the chipped wood. It makes great mulch. There is a warning to go with this however.

Quote:

Coarse chipped wood makes fine mulch. A truckload of newly chopped tree material can contain enough chipped green leafy matter to get very hot, cooking your plants. Do not allow green mulch to touch plants as you cover the area. Reducing the chipped woodpile to a layer of 2 or 3 inches can lower the increased temperature.

I myself went and bought a bag of mulch at my local Walmart. I was shocked however to see that all they had was rubber mulch. This mulch retains its color for around 5 years and can be kept for many more.

Either way you go you are reusing things that would end up filling a landfill somewhere. Green is here to stay I think and I hope that we are helping more and more as time passes.

flippinout · #2 05-24-2010, 05:48 PM

This is a great way to save money. Using this product as mulch can help keep down the cost of mulch that you would normally buy.

And yes, you do have to keep the mulch away from your plants as it does get very hot. This is because of the leaves etc act like a compost pile and we all know how hot the center of those piles get.

You probably shouldnt use plastic under this mulch either as that would just add to the amount of heat generated by this particular mulch.

Now, if we could just come up with a way to color this free mulch, we would be in mulch heaven lol.

Although the "natural" look is something that would be good too.

badmomma · #3 05-25-2010, 01:34 AM

I would suppose that over time the mulch would turn gray. That isn't a bad color and would offset the follage nicely.

I had considered food coloring but it would bleed out as it rains. I was wondering if you couldn't just spray paint the top layer to add color. You would have to be careful not to spray the plant though but you could make it any color you wanted. HMM.

flippinout · #4 05-25-2010, 01:30 PM

I dont think that spray painting the mulch would be a good idea as the chemicals in the paint might leach out when it rains.

Let me do some research and see if I can find a way we can color our own mulch. I know how it could be done but dont know what it could be done with.

One could use a portable cement mixer to rotate the mulch while pouring the color in but still have to find out if we can safely color the mulch and what with.

flip_it_fast · #5 05-25-2010, 03:58 PM

Be sure that if your getting mulch from a tree trimmer that they do not have pine mixed in. Some plants that like acidity will do fine with pine mulch but most plants do not. Most landscapers know this but just to be sure you might want to mention your preference.

Also you should never lay mulch deeper than two to four inches.

troubles74 · #6 05-25-2010, 05:57 PM

You can actually take and soak the mulch in some water with food color.This will turn the color of the mulch to what ever color that you like.

It is totally safe and harmless to the enviroment,and will not hurt your plants one little bit.Ii have done this before and it worked great for me you just have to make sure to use plenty of dye in order to get a good strong color result.