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Pine bark mini nuggets

Posted by bonsaist Z6/ Bethlehem, Pa (My Page) on
Wed, Nov 11, 09 at 11:13

One of the ingredients of soil mix for my container grown fig trees is pine bark. I haven't been able to find any small size pine bark mini nuggets lately. So this is what I've tried and works great.
Open a bag of pine bark mini nuggets on the drive way and spread it evenly.


Set your lawn mower to the lowest cut and place the bag on it, and run it over the pine bark.

Here's the before and after picture of the pine bark.

Bass
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Follow-Up Postings:

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RE: Pine bark mini nuggets

  • Posted by tapla z5b-6a MI (My Page) on
    Wed, Nov 11, 09 at 20:01

I'll remember this post as the problem of 'bark too large' comes up soo very often on the threads I frequent. Thanks for posting.

Al


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RE: Pine bark mini nuggets

I'll will be using this technique to mulch the pine CONES that fall from my trees....should work OK under a mulching blade. Thanks for the tip.

Dan


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RE: Pine bark mini nuggets

Dan
Are pine cones good for adding to potting soil like the pine bark?


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RE: Pine Cone mini nuggets

Yes, it works for me. However, I don't intend to keep my fig trees in pots for more than a year or two. I like to run the pine cones through the compost bin for partial degradation before using. My thoughts now are to mulch them with the lawnmower in the fall and take them out of the composter in the spring for use when I will be potting up some of my new starts....should reduce my costs.

Dan


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RE: Pine bark mini nuggets

I'm glad you find this post helpful. A few tips, this can be a bit messy, so remember to set the lawn mower really low so it can pick up all the pine bark. Otherwise it will be flying all over when it's high. And obviously don't forget to place the bag on.
I tried this with Pine bark mulch and it didn't work. Make sure you use the pine bark mini nuggets.
If you have a chipper that might be even easier, but not sure. I figured most people will have a lawn mower.

Bass


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RE: Pine bark mini nuggets

Although I haven't checked in the last year or so, the last place I found that reliably carried "pine fines" was Lowes, who carried it in 2-cu. ft. bags as "landscaper's mix". I'm not sure that Lowe's in other parts of the U.S. would stock it. Home Depot used to carry a similar product, but stopped stocking it several years ago. Good idea about the lawnmower!


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RE: Pine bark mini nuggets

Lowes and Home Depot and others regularly carry finer ground pine bark in big bags, at least in this part of the country (SEUS). They label it "soil conditioner." I have used scores of bags of this in different brands over the years in making potting soil for use in big pots.


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RE: Pine bark mini nuggets

Do you have to filter out pine bark "dust"? I've been using landscape mix from Lowe's but the filtering part is tiresome. I'll try mowing over pine bark nuggets next time I make a mix. I just finished all of 6 bags of landscape mix this week but that was a lot of pine bark dust to be thrown away on the lawn.


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RE: Pine bark mini nuggets

  • Posted by gorgi z6b NJ (My Page) on
    Fri, Nov 13, 09 at 13:10

Me too, I had NO success in finding them MINI pine bark
nuggets. In the past, I had used them in my soil mix.
What I did find, was the BIGGER ones that I tend to
use at the bottom of large pot (drainage). I had heard
of the idea of using the lawn-mover before; next year
I'll do it.

lou_midlothian_tx,
I would not worry about "filtering" any bark dust
at all; I think that it should make a good
addition to the overall soil mix...


 
 

 

 


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