Pros & Cons of Woodchips, and Why Aggregates and Binding Agents Matter for Your Soil

[@mustwereallydothis]

We live in the far north and use hugalculture and straw mulch almost exclusively. Our beds are waist high. We the first two feet is made up of rotting wood, river silt and wood chips. The 8 inches or so is made up of assorted mulch consisting of branches, leaves, wood chips, straw, river silt and random soil. We top the bed off with 8 inches of good garden soil and compost. Then we mulch the beds with compost and straw. Everything grows beautifully in our beds even the first year. The second year the soil is a gardener's dream come true. Mind you, we live in a river valley so we have a huge advantage right out of the gate but I can't say enough about how much we love hugalculture.

[@anthonymikiciuksr3661]

The BTE method has started to show a result after 4 yrs in my sand/silt soil. The top 2 or 3 inches are dark and loamy. Still when planting veggie starts ,I move the wood chips, make a hole in the sandy soil, add a healthy shovel full of compost, lightly mix it with the existing soil and then set the new plant in it. Then I push the wood chips back around the plant. The wood chip mulch really helps hold the moisture in the sandy soil.

[@Jarjarjar21]

My dad always aerated our suburban lawn. He used a homemade tool. Long thick nails ...8 or ten inches long put into a board. We stepped on the board to make the nails ( Perhaps 8 ) go into the ground. A rope was tied to the board so we could pull it out. I remember doing this to the lawn. ...

[@anewlife5332]

I’ve been mulching my plot with the chicken bedding - woodchip and chicken poop - out of instinct rather than scientific research, and it’s working a treat. Normally the soil here is baked hard and compacted like concrete but this approach is making a huge difference. Greetings from Spain.

[@maritimegardening4887]

That's a great combination of things to add

[@triciawilliamson2081]

Thank you for doing this series. This information is very helpful for those of us with solid clay soils.

[@maritimegardening4887]

My pleasure

[@ElevenBird]

I'm glad you mentioned the heat re wood chips. I'm in GA and I would argue our red clay is an excellent place to start* (tomatoes love it) but the chips DO break down pretty fast Plus it's such an easy resource to get

[@seanmccullough2871]

Good info. I was a huge proponent of wood chips in zone 9 (AZ). Two years of that made a world of difference. Just moved to zone 3... Different story.

[@ElevenBird]

I followed a gardener in AZ and Yes He LOVED the chips I'm in 7B and still love the chips :)

[@seanmccullough2871]

@@ElevenBird it was remarkable how well it helped with the condition of the soil and moisture retention.

[@jay90374]

I'm in Canada zone 3 and love my wood chips, started 5 yrs ago on my freshly tilled lawn.

[@seanmccullough2871]

@@jay90374 I've been thinking about that. I'm just south of Canada zone 3

[@denislosieroutdoors]

Lots to think about I've been doing the back to eden wood chip thing for about 5 years and was given the impression that do it once and ur done... my soil is definitely better then before, now I have been raking back the wood chips adding screen year old composted chicken manure and planting in that then re covering with chips... Denis

[@ElevenBird]

I am fortunate to have the space to get loads and loads of chips I was also fortunate to find a company clearing the road ways we've gotten like 10 loads so far and I'm excited to let most of it just sit for a year or so. We've let it sit before and the mulching material really is way different given some time I also use the chips to compost everything I bury EVERYTHING that will compost in chips in my compost pile It is the "brown" and every food scrap goes there Keeps the dogs and other critters away because they can't smell it

[@wendysgarden4283]

@@ElevenBird I get free wood chips from the next city over, their park system. They have piles of this year's, last year's, and 2 years ago, which is pretty much soil already, with weeds growing in it. Each pile is easily 75 meters long and 8 high, so it's hot composting all the time. Their shredder turns it into tiny pieces, no bigger than half a cm in any direction. I take the year-old mulch, and in my yard it turns to soil or loam quickly. Regular big chunky wood chips don't break down nearly as quickly. So yes to letting it sit for a year and then spreading it, if you have the space! If only I had a pickup truck, I'd be all set with that free mulch. With a sub-compact car, it is a bit of work getting it to my yard. : )

[@dogslobbergardens6606]

@@wendysgarden4283 That's awesome! We just moved from a town where we paid taxes to have the trees along the streets trimmed etc, which is fine, but then we had to buy the chips from a private company. Not so great. I need to start calling around here in our new area, hopefully I'll find a better deal, if not for free.

[@maritimegardening4887]

I hope he tastes great :)

[@jamesbell491]

Hey Greg. Love your videos. I’ve been learning a lot. In the comments on one of your videos someone mentioned using pine needles as mulch. I have piles of pine needles every spring. Are they as good as straw, hay or seaweed? Getting ready to try planting some potatoes as an experiment. I’m on PEI on the north shore and the cold, I was going to say cool, later it’ll be cool breeze coming in off the water keeps the temperatures low even on a sunny day.

[@maritimegardening4887]

I've used it before and it works fine - just try not to mix it in with the soil too much when you are digging up your potatoes

[@michaelsallee7534]

Andre Voison in his writtings on grasslands...grassland is improving even after 450 years

[@noralaughlin9536]

My biggest mistake ever was using wood chips! I’m in zone 8b. Never again! Unless I was using it as mulch for established perennials.

[@pattyclarkson3]

Great info, thank you. I'm living on a lot which is what you described... new home, the soil is clay that's been compacted. It'll take me many years working on it to get it in a little bit better shape. I'm using raised beds in places but planting some plants right in the soil... those with long tap roots mainly.

[@dogslobbergardens6606]

We just moved from a place with a yard like that. Sunflowers in particular helped us get things going in the actual ground. But about 70% of our stuff was in raised beds.

[@maritimegardening4887]

Glad it was helpful!

[@andreac.6164]

Really appreciate my neighbor who sells firewood. He is generous and I can take all the wood chips I want. Question off topic, I was going to plant my potatoes but ran out of time and forgot them outside in a brown bag. It's been a week of low 40's f. at night. Are they still good to plant? Thanks for your videos, from NorthernVermont USA

[@jay90374]

Sawdust is very different than wood chips. Spuds should be fine if they have white sprouts.

[@wendysgarden4283]

taters should be fine. Get the in the ground. I refrigerate mine to keep them from sprouting, starting about January when they really want to sprout, and then take them out 10 days before I plan to plant them. Works fine.

[@maritimegardening4887]

As long as it's been above freezing - and it sounds like it has - your potatoes should be fine

[@antiowarr9467]

I had to laugh looking at this, this morning where I am. Paul Gautschi video just stated what you guys just said right here today. lol lol When Paul said "Wood Chips" he defined what wood chips are. Every thing that this guy just said is exactly what Paul said. lol You should look and listen to what Paul says not what other people said he said. The video was done 2 ladies Dana and Sarah films. Paul was very clear what he meant when he said wood chips.... lol The religious part not so much....

[@ElevenBird]

MAN ... I'ma go WAY off topic The religious part, I wish churches would take seriously and start some community gardens!! There are so many homeless here that orchards and food sources are needed out side of the grocery stores. Also, food scarcity is real this year. I'm an atheist and I'd love to see gardens in the yards of these churches on every corner

[@dogslobbergardens6606]

@@ElevenBird churches, schools, parks, vacant lots, wherever some office building has a giant lawn out front that they're just wasting water and fertilizer on for no damn reason... Hell yeah.

[@dogslobbergardens6606]

Right, he was really more about everything you would find on a forest floor, including freshly cut leaves and needles and twigs and all that. Not *just* piles of 100% chipped wood. That's not the same thing at all, really... no nitrogen source in it. I honestly found him pretty hard to listen to. But the wood chip definition is laid out clearly on the website. www.backtoedenfilm.com/best-wood-chips-for-a-garden.html#/

[@maritimegardening4887]

I've watched the BTE film a few times. My comments were based on my impression from the film. Paul recommends ramial woodchips. I was talking about ramial woodchips. Paul does not say anything about how the growing zone might affect the ability of the woodchips to break down and improve soil.

[@antiowarr9467]

@@maritimegardening4887 I watched it a few times also/ I am going to watch it again because I though he said it could take up to3 years to become effective. I thought he also said do this when the leaves are on the trees also. I will check it out again. I also believe he said that he only used this in his Orchard and used the top soil for his veg garden where he feeds his chickens the produce from his garden and chicken manure and what they don't eat he then burns. Thx for reply and will have another look. cheers

[@IS-217]

Great discussion. Thanks for sharing. Soil, never thought I would care so much about it lol. Keep the soil alive. Plant more perennials to feed the soil life. More roots = more aggregates. Check out - I am organic gardening There is a soil series of videos he does, great stuff. Mark is super knowledgeable and does great experiments. He has played around with wood chips trials in the field as well. Great content if you're interested. Lots of soil life talk and explanations about aggregates, fungi etc. He's located zone 6 like you. Happy gardening Cheers!

[@ginger76661]

Any SOIL DISTURBANCE will destroy the soil structure, glues for aggregate stability, and micro fungi structure that built pore space and channels for filtration, water and air. Building a healthy soil takes years...its not a over night process. Good balance of compost, mulches and time....

[@makingitthrough190]

I’m just wondering who are you talking to?

[@maritimegardening4887]

Robert Pavlis - all the info on him and his books are in the description box