wood chips as a mulch ?

[tweety]

Hi,

I am growing in pots and in a small raised bed.
if all goes to plan I'll have tomatoes, courgettes, sweet peppers, beans (dwarf runners and dwarf french), carrots, leeks, salad leaves, raddishes and strawberries.

I am looking for something to put on top of the compost to prevent it from drying.
I have some wood chips that I used for some flower pot and I am wondering if this would be ok to use for the fruit and veg ?
I also have some of those clay pebble but I am not sure if this is ok to put them on top of the compost. (I use this for indoor plants).

thanks in advance for your advice.

[Helgalush]

Hi, I havent actually used any, but my book that is the inspiration for all my gardening (Crops in Pots) suggests using mulches for some veggies. It doesnt specify which veggies but says that if the surface of the soil will be quickly covered by plants then its not necessary.

It suggests a variety of mulches from the pebbles you have described to bark, cocoa shells and pine cones.

There are some pics of some with the pebbles and they look really effective.

I hadnt thought to use any (even though its in the book!) but now that you have mentioned it it could be useful for some of my pots.

Be interested to know what other Grapes think.

[Flummery]

Our Britain in Bloom group have mulched some of our flower beds as and when wood chips became available. I went to plant something else in one of these beds on Sunday. We've had no rain for about 3 weeks. As I scaped back the mulch I was astonished at how moist the soil was just beneath. They Certainly work.

The only proviso is that these are permanent plantings I'm talking about. You will want to remove your veg plants and replant when you've eaten them. That would leave your soil all woody. In these circumstances I don't think I'd go for that. You can, of course, use straw or grass cuttings which will decompost over the season.

[tweety]

Thanks for your replies...

Helgalush, I'll go and have a look for at that book... anything on growing veg in pots is worth a look... I may even be inspired ;-)

Flummery, as I am growing in pots I am not sure I would keep the compost for a 2nd season. my guess is that all the goodness would have been used, am I wrong ? but this may not be a goog idea for the raised bed. I'll look into the straw option... I wouldn't dare use the grass as it has been more than generously watered with moss killer by my OH ! :-(

[Flummery]

No you're not wrong - I wouldn't use compost for 2 seasons for the same crop - I usually tip it onto the veg beds or put it in the compost bin. It might be easier to scrape chippings off from a pot than from the beds though?

Moss killer! You'll have a black lawn soon!

[Paulottie]

Woodchips, although they add nutrients to the soil in the long run, initially take up a lot of nitrogen in decomposition....no good round veg

I use gravel on clay pots...poured off into bucket with drainage holes washed and used for grit next season.... on a raised bed you could use compost, MPC, leafmould, mushroom muck....as Helga pointed out the bed should be that intensively planted that no soil shows anyway!.

[tweety]

Moss killer! You'll have a black lawn soon!

to get a black lawn this implies you have lawn !!!
but it looks more and more like bare soil !!!

[tweety]

Woodchips, although they add nutrients to the soil in the long run, initially take up a lot of nitrogen in decomposition....no good round veg

I use gravel on clay pots...poured off into bucket with drainage holes washed and used for grit next season.... on a raised bed you could use compost, MPC, leafmould, mushroom muck....as Helga pointed out the bed should be that intensively planted that no soil shows anyway!.

I am not too worry about the raised bed as everytime I check it is quite moist. but I know the pots dry very quickly...
I like the idea of gravel... I'll look into that, but that might get my pots too heavy... (some of then are on the shelves of the plastic greenhouse... which look like they are going to struggle with a fully grown tomato or courgette plant...)

[Helgalush]

What about some of the larger pebbles or stones? As that would do the job but be really easy to take off when its re-planing time? Just a thought.

Re: the book - please check out reviews before you buy as its not got a lot of general gardening advice - really just stuff for absolute beginners like me - and not much on specific varieties/growing problems.

Its my inspiration because it gives you 'recipes' for planting combinations - not necessarily companion planting but things that are aesthetically pleasing. That is why it inspires me as everything in the book looks so pretty - and its the kind of stuff I like to eat - but it was probably all staged for the photos!!! But the things I have done so far seem to be working and look nice! And it does contain most things I have needed to know to get going, etc.

[Two_Sheds]

I have a twisted willow in a pot that dries out (and falls over) really quickly. I mulched it in my usual fashion with wet newspapers, topped with more soil so it looks nice. Does the job, costs nowt

[chris]

Two Sheds - do you use the colour pages from newspapers too? I have been doing, but notice that you seem to use newspaper a lot? I've read on here that some peeps only use B&W pages.