Wood chips in the garden

[Tania]

Glenn, it is interesting that you mentioned the dusty and dry soil in your post. I have had the same experience when we were amending our garden with truckloads of mushroom manure and compost. The amendments will work great for a couple of months, but then the dirt will turn into fine dust that does not hold water. No organic matter build up occurred with that approach - it seems like all organics were used up by the plants in summer! So the net result of 10 year annual application was a) a strain on our budget ($1000 every year); b) our native clay soil turned into fine dust (summer) and mud (winter, spring and fall).

Our observations were clearly confirmed by worms activities. Lots of worms after applying manure. And 0 worms in September. None. Every year. It was so frustrating! And heavy job to manually spread the heavy wet manure every spring.

With wood chips, I am happy to see worms everywhere! And spreading wood chips is a very easy job. They are light and easy to work with.

[Tania]

Originally Posted by Tania

Another interesting article about the Living Soil.

http://www.healthy-vegetable-gardeni...livingsoil.pdf

The quotes that I found interesting from the above article -

16. As early as 1986, we proposed using the term ramial wood [or ramial chipped wood - RCW - after processing] for this material, which has until now been regarded as merely a nuisance industrial waste. Besides cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin, ramial wood contains many kinds of proteins, all the amino acids, and nearly all the sugars and starches, as well as intermediate polysaccharides. It also contains countless enzyme systems and hormones, as well as polyphenols, essential oils, terpenes, tannins etc. that are associated to varying degrees with the nutrients necessary to generate and support life.

33. Results were not long in coming. Odours disappeared, the RCWs were
transformed; agricultural productivity rose the next year, and continued to do so for
some years longer. The following effects were noted:
• An increase of more than 50% in organic soil content
• An increase in pH values3
• Productivity increases ranging from 30% to 300%, depending on the crop
• These productivity increases can be measured in terms of volume or of dry-matter
content, as in the case of potatoes4
• Reduced water consumption
• A major change in the growth and prevalence of weeds5
• Major reduction in insects and diseases6
• Improved resistance to frost and drought.

64. In general, it appeared that nitrogen fixation depends on a group of bacteria whose active enzyme contains iron as the central element, similar to the structure of haemoglobin. As distinct from the leguminous Rhizobium, this would explain why nitrogen is so abundant in forest soils, and in those we treated with RCW. On this basis, we pose the following hypothesis: (5) The nitrogen cycle is fed primarily by the microbial fixation of N2, and secondarily by the action of fungi and
mycorrhizae, in soils treated with RCW.

[Tania]

90. We can now put forward the following hypothesis: (11) Ramial chipped wood,
when exposed to attack by Basidiomycetes, can replace all biological functions that
require chemical and biochemical nutrients. RCW also contains the energy needed
to support the processes and to provide a margin for the demands of entropy. The
energy released covers the electromagnetic spectrum, wholly or in part, - The
second law of thermodynamics: entropy and soil biology

108. Thus we put forward the following hypothesis: (14) The pedogenetic
processes found in hardwood forests are clearly related to the structure of their
lignin components, and they produce soils that not only permit the smooth cycling
of nutrients but have proven highly adaptable and extraordinarily productive. Thus,
in the hardwood forest we typically find a climacic forest type, with trees of various
ages and numerous species, while in forests where Gymnosperms dominate there is
no chance for regrowth or renewal and only a limited number of species can
survive. Everywhere on earth, it was in the hardwood forests that agriculture was
able to take root and flourish.

Glenn, this answers your question about which wood is better. Looks like hardwoods would be much better.

Too bad for us, all conifers

[Tania]

110. These results help to highlight the importance of mechanisms that originate
in the forests themselves for governing the evolution of soil structure, fertility and
productivity. We therefore suggest the following hypothesis: (15) At all latitudes, the
soils now devoted to agriculture were originally wrested from the hardwood forests.
They should be considered as forest soils that have been degraded in order to meet
human needs. With help of RCW technology, soil fertility can be restored, because
with it all the biological mechanisms can be regenerated, the trophic web can be
reactivated, and the structure of the soil can recover.

[COMPOSTER]

I am an admitted skeptic regarding agricultural research believing that most of it is funded by big folks that have products to sell and therefore potentially very biased. I still read some of it because I want to know the scientific facts behind why something is supposed to have benefits or why it does not. I'm finding it very interesting that I am finding very little scholarly research on ramial chipped wood or arborist wood chips. Am I missing something? Is that because it is free in a lot of cases? I have done numerous regular searches and searched Google Scholar. The research paper that Tatiana posted is about the only thing I can find.

Glenn

[ChrisK]

Here is another one looking at disease transmission to trees.

http://auf.isa-arbor.com/request.asp...issue=5&Type=1

I've been using wood chips for years on everything from perennial borders to veg gardens to the chicken coop run.

[Tania]

Chris,

What kind of wood is in your wood chips? I am especially interested in the type you use for chickens.

What is your experience so far with wood chips in the veggie garden?

[Tania]

Glenn,

I found this one today:

RAMIAL CHIPPED WOOD: A BASIC TOOL FOR REGENERATING SOILS by Céline Caron, Laval University.

https://attachment.fbsbx.com/file_do...uXHm-ls36MXrBD

For those you are not going to read the full article, here are some quotes:

The «Groupe de Coordination sur les Bois Raméaux» now has
a membership of fifteen scientists from various fields of the scientific
community. Data from various experiments has been collected over the years.
Some results are being released. The most promising observations from a 350-
plot experimental site are:
• Better soil water conservation
• A pH increase from 0.4 to 1.2 within two years
• A yield increase ranging from 30% to 300%
• A noticeable increase in frost and drought resistance
• More developed and highly-mycorrhized root systems
• Fewer and less diversified weeds
• A decrease or complete elimination of pests
• Enhanced flavor in fruit production
• Higher dry matter, phosphorus, potassium and magnesium content in potato
tubers
• A soil turning from pale to deep brown in the same season
• Selective natural germination of tree seeds
• A thick moder turning into a soft mull under a sugar maple canopy.

[Tania]

And one more article by Professor Gilles Lemieux

https://attachment.fbsbx.com/file_do...usshmiiyW9ZH_Q

[ChrisK]

In NC we have everything from softwood to hardwood. The loads are always just whatever they have for the week or day. When it's free you can't be too picky!

Nothing special for the chicken run either. We just take out as best we can any big rounds and limbs. It's usually pretty coarsely chipped, not like the decorative tiny pieces you can buy. They love to dig around in it and with the constant manure and churning it breaks down quickly. New layers added as necessary and occasionally the whole thing is cleaned out and spread on the garden and another fresh bed put down.

My anecdotal experience in the veg garden is positive. They hold water and keep the soil cool. Nothing groundbreaking there...everybody knows mulch is a good thing!

I haven't seen any anecdotal negative consequences either. You do have to move them aside to plant and make sure the big pieces don't get thrown back up against the stems of small plants.

And, skip the cardboard. Unnecessary and can even be detrimental to oxygen exchange with the soil.

Originally Posted by Tania

Chris,

What kind of wood is in your wood chips? I am especially interested in the type you use for chickens.

What is your experience so far with wood chips in the veggie garden?

[COMPOSTER]

Tatiana / ChrisK,

Thanks for the links. This is obviously a very under studied area.

I agree with skipping the cardboard for an already established relatively weed free bed. But if you are starting a new area the cardboard or newspaper will be very important to kill the grass and weeds under the mulch. Without doing that a lot of folks will get very discouraged very easily and give up before the wood chip mulch has a chance to work.

Glenn

[Tania]

Glenn, that's a great point, I am so glad you mentioned that!

We do not use cardboard under wood chips in the garden. However we put it down under the fruit trees to suppress grass. Then wood chips (~6-8" layer) go on top. Without cardboard grass and some perennial weeds (like buttercup) will grow through the chips, and that's not good.


Tatiana

[ChrisK]

FWIW:

http://sjcmastergardeners.wordpress....rdboard-mulch/

and

http://blogs.extension.org/gardenpro...ul-wood-chips/

This should be in your bookmarks and consulted first, IMO:

http://blogs.extension.org/gardenprofessors/

Originally Posted by Tania

Glenn, that's a great point, I am so glad you mentioned that!

We do not use cardboard under wood chips in the garden. However we put it down under the fruit trees to suppress grass. Then wood chips (~6-8" layer) go on top. Without cardboard grass and some perennial weeds (like buttercup) will grow through the chips, and that's not good.


Tatiana

[Tania]

Thank you Chris!

no termites in our area. Lucky us!

[ChrisK]

More:

http://blogs.extension.org/gardenpro.../04/for-mulch/

http://blogs.extension.org/gardenpro...h-and-reality/

http://blogs.extension.org/gardenpro...estoration.pdf

http://www.hrt.msu.edu/assets/PagePD...d-Schutzki.pdf