Wood chips that are or are not good for the garden?

[Larry Edgerton]

Like the sign says......

I have never been able to find a guide that states what is and isn't good for compost. I have read that oak is not because of the tanic acids. I am doing a job with Makore right now and was wondering what direction to head with the chips, garden or woods?

[Mike Henderson]

The only one I've heard of is walnut.

Mike

[Mel Fulks]

According to the phd radio guy I've listened to for years ,wood chips from almost any kind can be composted and used.
Seems IIRC that there might be a couple of exceptions as to what can be put down uncomposted, walnut and something
else. He is adamant that grinding up leaves and leaving them on lawn does not acidify the ground.

[Kent A Bathurst]

Try this for your google search:

"using composted hardwood for gardens"

Various sources, including college/universities.

A quick scan showed walnut bad. ALso some woods are of no help, or can be a problem depending on what you are growing - this comes down to PH level and things like high tannic acid.

Saw a couple places where they basically said - not directly on plants; compost first with added nitrogen, check/modify PH level before use.

Did not get into specific species in my brief skim. But - there are plenty of clues about acidity, etc, that should guide you.

OTOH - I suspect this is not a common species for you to produce. In which case - if you are not sure, then you have your answer. I would doubt the experts have done in-depth, detailed, scientific studies of every species out there.

SWMBO is quite knowledgeable in this area - it is her profession - and her approach over the years has consistently been "Some things are bad. Most things are OK - neither good nor bad. None are excellent. Too many species, too many variables. It is not worth the risk in MY gardens. Go Away - I'm Busy."

[Larry Edgerton]

SWMBO is quite knowledgeable in this area - it is her profession - and her approach over the years has consistently been "Some things are bad. Most things are OK - neither good nor bad. None are excellent. Too many species, too many variables. It is not worth the risk in MY gardens. Go Away - I'm Busy."

That made me laugh.......

I have been putting oak in the woods, so I suppose you are right, I'm not sure, why take a chance. As much as it bothers my nose it may not be good, or it may help keep bugs away. I tried some around a couple of tomato plants this year to see if it would keep the bugs away, but no conclusion as I never had a bug problem on the rest of the plants. I did that same experiment with cedar shavings a few years ago and the plants with the cedar had less tomato bugs.

I've got 30 yards of composted cow manure to till in in the spring so I'm good without it.

Thanks, Larry

[Jim Becker]

I avoid putting my walnut chips and shavings into the compost pile, but most others that I work with, such as cherry, poplar, oak, etc., no problem. Even my daughter's Flemish Giant Rabbit's litter box "stuff" (pine pellets) goes into the compost pile.

[Art Mann]

If the sawdust is mixed with other materials like grass clippings and household vegetable garbage and then allowed to rot before using, that is good. However, if you put fresh sawdust onto a garden, then the organisms that break down the material will capture and lock up the nitrogen in the soil while the material rots. You might want to do it anyway and use a lot of nitrogen fertilizer if you are trying to improve the texture of the soil.

[Mark Bolton]

Any and all information that I have ever found is that all woodchips are bad for the garden.

The micro organisms that digest wood fiber feed exclusively on nitrogen. This means that when you add woodchips or sawdust in any quantity to a garden you lock up every ounce of nitrogen until the wood is gone. If youve ever been around a sawmill or a wood lot you will see, and know, that a pile of wood chips will last indefinitely. It will lay there for literally years and even decades for a good size chip pile.

The rule I have always heard, and lived by, is that chips or shavings added to a garden or compost heap are viabile in <10% increments by volume to improve tilth but even at that they will still stall growth due to the nitrogen issue.

A good test is to add vast quantities of horse manure or mixed manure from a stable. There is vast quantities of sawdust in the average load of horse manure (non-composted) from a stable. Upon doing that, you will have the lowest producing garden you have ever experienced. The garden will get up, and just stall. The garden will likely stay this way for a period of years until the sawdust is digested.

[Mark Bolton]

Also, having owned horses and doing a lot of research due to local horse "folk" wanting chips from the shop, the walnut thing is really just a myth. There is some relevance with regards to a horse standing in solid walnut chips and hoof issues. There have even been issues with horses and poplar but when you dig in its usually to do with a horse who was likely starved to death and ate large quantities of a freshly fallen poplar. I dont think many animals, other than a goat, would do well on such a diet. Wilted cherry and so on with cattle is well known. But again, these are all unique situations.

Once in the form of chips most woods are relatively benign other that for your plants and vegetables.

[Mel Fulks]

That's a good point, Mark. And though I did not mention it ,the guy I refererenced does make it clear that extra nitrogen
will be needed. Important to consider that some garden practices are good only in the overall considerations of what is available ,what has to be purchased ,and what there is too much of.

[Curt Harms]

Any and all information that I have ever found is that all woodchips are bad for the garden.

The micro organisms that digest wood fiber feed exclusively on nitrogen. This means that when you add woodchips or sawdust in any quantity to a garden you lock up every ounce of nitrogen until the wood is gone. If youve ever been around a sawmill or a wood lot you will see, and know, that a pile of wood chips will last indefinitely. It will lay there for literally years and even decades for a good size chip pile.

The rule I have always heard, and lived by, is that chips or shavings added to a garden or compost heap are viabile in <10% increments by volume to improve tilth but even at that they will still stall growth due to the nitrogen issue.

A good test is to add vast quantities of horse manure or mixed manure from a stable. There is vast quantities of sawdust in the average load of horse manure (non-composted) from a stable. Upon doing that, you will have the lowest producing garden you have ever experienced. The garden will get up, and just stall. The garden will likely stay this way for a period of years until the sawdust is digested.

What I've heard/read about wood chips & compost piles is to add some straight nitrogen fertilizer - Urea or Ammonium Nitrate - along with the wood chips.

[Art Mann]

Any and all information that I have ever found is that all woodchips are bad for the garden.

The micro organisms that digest wood fiber feed exclusively on nitrogen. This means that when you add woodchips or sawdust in any quantity to a garden you lock up every ounce of nitrogen until the wood is gone. If youve ever been around a sawmill or a wood lot you will see, and know, that a pile of wood chips will last indefinitely. It will lay there for literally years and even decades for a good size chip pile.



The rule I have always heard, and lived by, is that chips or shavings added to a garden or compost heap are viabile in <10% increments by volume to improve tilth but even at that they will still stall growth due to the nitrogen issue.

A good test is to add vast quantities of horse manure or mixed manure from a stable. There is vast quantities of sawdust in the average load of horse manure (non-composted) from a stable. Upon doing that, you will have the lowest producing garden you have ever experienced. The garden will get up, and just stall. The garden will likely stay this way for a period of years until the sawdust is digested.

Some farmers routinely distribute chicken litter onto their commercial fields and they pay for it. This material is a high concentration of chicken droppings mixed with fresh (typically) pine wood shavings. In this case, the nitrogen content in the mix is more than enough to compensate for the nitrogen depletion problem. That is one exception to the rule.

I compost sawdust rather than shavings because of the larger surface area per pound. I mix sawdust with grass clippings, household food residues like coffee grounds and mellon rinds, leaves and legume crop residue like pea vines. I try not to use more than 1/3 sawdust. I "fertilize" the whole pile with 13-13-13 and a little lime. During dry spells, I may water the pile. It takes about a year for this mix to rot enough to make good compost. At that point, it has the color and consistency of wet potting soil. On one occasion, I pulled up some cherry tomato vines and composted them as part of the mix, The next year, I had a good crop of cherry tomatoes ever growing out of the pile.