awesome. I have a growing pile of limbs to work on. I have a small chipper but it only can do so much.

I dont think the mulch you buy in a bag isnt aged as far as I know so I dont see why you can use yours right away.

mike

I think it depends on where you are going to use it. I wouldn't use it on beds of edible plants when it is that new because of its reputed ability to tie up nitrogen as it decomposes, but you could put it in pathways or on beds of ornamentals. When I use bark mulch around edible plants, I usually put down some sort of barrier between the mulch and the plants--often it is thick cardboard or a good-quality woven cloth landscape fabric. My favorite way, though, is just to put down an inch of compost on top of the soil and then put the bark on top of it. I've never had an issue with any plants looking nitrogen deprived when I've used bark mulch that way.

Our chipper/shredder mostly sits in the garage because we never have time to drag it out and use it, but once Tim retires in a few more years, we're going to go on a cleaning-up-the-woods rampage and clean up 10 acres of deadfall. Right now, unless the deadfall branches and trees happen to fall into a pathway, we leave it alone and let it decompose on the ground. I haven't told him about the mulch-making binge I'm planning for his retirement years. If he knew about it, he might postpone retirement a few more years.

Dawn

Wulfleton, Where did you rent your wood chipper? I've been searching online and the only place I've found is Home Depot, But i'm still unsure of the price!

Dawn, usually put a thin layer of newspaper down, and then put my mulch on top of that, so I'd probably be okay using them this year, but I have so many rotting leaves I can probably wait another year before having to break in to the wood chips for mulch. I was sore after taking care of our acre's worth of wood...I wouldn't blame your husband a bit if he put off his retirement once he learns your plan!

Josh, we rented the chipper from Hertz equipment rental in Shawnee. Unlike Home Depot, they let you reserve the chipper (at home depot you just have to show up and hope it's available), and if you reserve it on a Friday, you get to keep it until Monday morning for the 24 hour price ($176 dollars). It was a 35 horsepower and could take branches up to 6 inches, so it make pretty quick work of it. I know home depot has a smaller chipper available, so if you have smaller limbs that might be a cheaper option.

We are going to be doing the same thing this year on our acreage. We'll be using the mulch for walkways in the newly organized raised bed garden. If you're in the Shawnee area, you're not far from us so I REALLY appreciate the rental info!!!!

And mercy, we have a LOT of limbs to chip.....

Yes, Paula, I think we are pretty close to each other (I'm at the Cleveland/pott/Oklahoma county line).
I did see a Crossland rental place on Highway 9 when I was driving to Norman on Sunday, so you might check prices there, also.
I'm hoping maybe we won't have any 90 mph winds or tornado near misses this spring so that the yard can stay clear at least for a few months!
Krista