[VoodooChile]

One of the local Lake Geneva gardening gurus-- whose work I earnestly do admire-- is a hardcore anti-wood mulch advocate. He uses mushroom compost instead.

Advantages:
1) m.c. doesn't leach nitrogen from the soil as it decomposes
2) m.c. doesn't create an impregnable crust that water won't penetrate.

Disadvantages:
1) it looks like, well, compost...perennials don't stand out as well as when mulched with wood
2) weeds proliferate,
3) it takes longer to be able to walk and work in the garden after rain-events

What do you think?

[Stonehenge]

Depends - if we're talking about my own beds, I'd never have the time to keep up with the weeding. If it was the bed of a client who promised they knew what they were getting into, I'd say sure.

[VoodooChile]

I want those clients!

Or maybe not...

Who wants clients that do their own work, and don't buy truck loads of wood mulch?

Anyway, Stone, what about the appearance issue? I've seen some of this firm's gardens, and to me, perennials backdropped in black look like hell, and it takes regular maintenance by a crew of laborers to deal with the weed seedlings.

Also, doesn't mushroom compost have salinity issues?

[cutntrim]

I had a customer in the past that used to get us to put down a pickup truck worth of mushroom compost each spring. We got it for free about 20min away from a Mushroom farm.

Never used it anywhere else though.

[scl]

I, personnaly, think that's ridiculous. The main reasons you use mulch are for looks and weed resistance. Water penetration problems? I've never seen that, but it may be a problem. If its for soil amendment. I say sure, go for it. But I think the aesthetics would be less than attractive.

[VoodooChile]

SCL,
I have seen the crust issue, today actually, on an account I just picked up. I don't know if it has to do with the type of mulch used, the thickness of the mulch layer, or the plant that the mulch is under.

This situation was under a White Pine, the mulch looked like 1-2 year old shredded hardwood, and the crust turned my trowel when I tried to weed out some garlic mustard. I had to stab into the mulch, a la Norman Bates, to pop the weeds. Water was definitely rolling off this surface, not that the White Pine would mind...

This gardening guru is a disciple of Piet Oudolf, the great Dutch designer, and the emphasis in Piet's gardens is wall-to-wall plants. Forget about mulch, you can't even see the ground...

Maybe long-term plant vigor compensates for the short-term drawbacks?

(Mushroom compost, by the way, makes a great soil amendment when incorporated in moderate quantities.)

[Bill Schwab]

Being 5 minutes from the Del Mar race track, we can get all we need free with proof of insurance. In our soils, the best is to grind in mulch, or organic compost and let the groundcovers crawl over the beds and not worry about mulch after than. Then Juan Valdez and his weed pickers come by once a month and pluck the weeds.

[VoodooChile]

Bill,
Sounds like you are talking about horse manure. Mushroom compost is horse manure that has had 3-4 flushes of mushrooms grown in it. After the compost is spent for mushroom production, it is sold as a soil ammendment. The mushroom growing mellows the manure, reducing the amount of urea present, or so I've been told.

Raw horse manure would burn most perennials' roots, wouldn't it?

[dan deutekom]

I use mushroom compost in my annual beds. When the annuals are pulled in the fall I spread the compost about 3" thick. Mushroom mulch has been sterilized before being used to grow mushrooms so there is no weed seed in it. In the spring it really keeps the weeds down until it is time to plant the annuals. I just till it into the soil before I plant. It really helps the structure of the soil. I wouldn't use it as a mulch because it looks awful and the weed seed that blows into from spring flowering weeds will germinate quite well.

[BJR]

In Aus mishrooms are grown in a straw.

It is a great compost for soil conditioning, but the PH is not constant with different batches. It has a tendency to be Alkaline.

Due to this it is not used around plants in the Proteacea family. Or plants such as Azales and Camellias that like acid soils.

I went to a seminar where we were told the results of reasearch into different composts. There was mushroom compost, composted recycled green waste from waste disposal sites, composted cow and chicken manure. All were tested on Statice.


The chicken manure generated the best leaf growth due to its high Nitrogen content.

The composted recycled green waste did a good job with leaf grouth and flower development.

The mushroom compost generated good leaf growth and a few more flowers than the chicken manure.

The cow manure was by far the best overall performer. Good leaf growth and a large number of flowers.

I have always used composted cow manure. It is a great mulch and soil conditioner. But it must be well composted. ALL plants love it.

[Terry D]

We rototill the MC into the clay soil and it works wonders.

Pickup loads are free! 90 yard deliveries are very cheap just mainly covers the trucking fees.

The customers love it, you spread your resources (save money), and have soil that you can actually work with!

This is the greatest invention ever for landscapers and not nearly enough of us take advantage of it!

SHAME.

[VoodooChile]

Great to know that Cal-lay-forn-ya ("tumbles into the sea") has bailed on the profit motive!

Round here M.C. goes for anywhere between $24-$27 per yard wholesale.

Used to be able to relieve farmers of their boulders gratis too!

At least in 'Sconi "the little streams of alcohol come tricklin' out the rocks!!!"

[Ax Man]

Hey I have a mountain like that here!

[VoodooChile]

Yup Ax,
The big rock candy kind...

[Terry D]

Alcohol, like rubbing alcohol?

The alcohol out here in CALi is actually crushed grapes that get fermented, and it ain't free!

BTW, I heard our wines can't be shipped to just anywhere, certain laws forbid that?!?!

We are the 'Land of the Free' aren't we?