Are Wood Chips Good Ground Cover

Using locally produced wood chips is a sustainable activity keeping a useful product out of the landfill which is both environmentally and economically a good thing.

Are wood chips good ground cover.

Here we re talking about tree bark chips or shredded bark mulch that comes in bags sold by garden centers. For example many types of wood chips and bark chips need to be replaced every few months because the wood s color fades. He uses the chips as mulch under shrubs and trees in the back yard as ground cover in the dog kennel and as filler for the ruts under his suv. Okay now that we have that out of our system here are 5 reasons why you shouldn t use playground wood chips or mulch.

They do break down rather quickly and will settle after a few weeks. These organic chips also attract earthworms and tend to create healthy fungi and bacterial growth. Even after the ground freezes the wood chips will help protect the roots of your winter harvest vegetables and prolong your growing season. As i mentioned of all the types of mulch we have used we have found wood chips to be the most unforgiving.

Wood chips decompose over time sending nutrients to the ground while strengthening soil structure and improving aeration. They are a mess. Wood chips are readily available and are quite useful in the landscape. In order to get the optimum benefits from wood chips they can be applied at a depth of 4 to 6 inches.

I have found that 2 3 is just right for wood chip mulch. So which to use. My neighbor kim has an area that isn t paved where he parks the family s second vehicle. It is essential that wood chips be used properly.

Rock based ground covers are low maintenance because they aren t alive. Compare the benefits of both and see which one is best for you. If you live in a region with the regular threat of cold extremes save up your wood chips and use them as insulation on the sides and bottom of your cold frame. Because wood chips are natural they contribute a lot of nutrients to surrounding soil.

Properly using wood chips as a mulch or to cover. Wood chips also regulate soil temperatures bring a natural feel to an area and can serve as path material to prevent muddy or dusty conditions. Towns and cities often have a mulch program where you can pick up your. Both mulch and ground cover plants have their good and not so good points.

Wood chips also help in winter gardening.