Reusing mulch - advice needed

[LOTTYPOTTY]

Last year I mulched around some of my veg on my allotment plot with hay for weed control and to conserve moisture. Although the vegetables have long gone I left the hay down to help maintain the soil temperature during the winter months.

I am now planning this year's planting and I'm wondering if I:

A) dig the hay into the soil to add 'body' to it or
B) remove the hay and add it to my compost bins.

The soil on my plot is very sandy and free draining but has produced some lovely vegetables so must be quite fertile too. I have only had the plot since last May but I understand the last occupant might of added some kind of fertiliser at one point.

Any advice would be greatly received.

[Kristen]

I would put the "spent" hay on the compost heap. Its probably still a bit rough to dig in. If you can get some more this year I would repeat the process. Ideally I would leave any mulch off the ground from now until March or so, so that the soil warms up quickly when the sun gets on it - as a mulch at this time of the year will keep the cold in for longer.

[LOTTYPOTTY]

Thanks for your reply regarding my query. That's a good point about removing the hay to enable the soil to warm up - I hadn't thought of that.

[Aberdeenplotter]

Hay isn't the best material to use as a mulch because you are almost guaranteed to have effectively sown a lawn in the area mulched as hay contaiins the grass seed. Much better option to use straw if you want to use that kind of material or even lawn grasscuttings.

[Two_Sheds]

Did you mean hay, or straw?

[LOTTYPOTTY]

Yes I did use hay and have a few small patches where the seeds have germinated but on the whole it did work well and was worth it. Had already thought about using straw this year instead and now it's been confirmed that it's the better one of the two to use I will.