I got some last year and it was pretty good. I'd prefer a more uniform particle size and less sapwood, but it was workable. Then I bought the same stuff this year and it was terrible. Just dust and huge chunks with very little in between. I ended up going to a nursery and buying a different brand for almost twice as much, but at least I can use it.

I'd take a close look at the mulch before buying.

The Timberline Pine Mulch I saw at my local Lowes didn't look good for either 5:1:1 or Gritty mix. What I saw looked similar to what penfold2 described.

I haven't found any good pine bark fines locally. I've checked Agway, all the garden centers, all the Big Box stores, local John Deer Landscaping, and local Mr. Mulch. In a few cases smaller places I called said 'we have it' but didn't when I checked the stuff in person.

I suspect that it's a regional issue, probably due to the material available to the processors that supply the region. It seems like many people in the upper mid-Atlantic region are having difficulty finding Pine Bark fines.

I wound up ordering a pallet of Fafard Aged pine Bark through a greenhouse supplier. It wasn't cheap, and they had to order it. It's nice stuff though.

All the pine mulch products I've seen were too large, had a lot of sapwood, and chunks of branches. Nobody stocks anything labeled as 'soil conditioner' or Orchid Bark. Earlier this year I got a bag of Gardenscape Pine Mulch at Lowes that was kind of passable for 5:1:1 with screening and picking out sapwood, but it was left over from last year and partially composted.

I bought some of the Timberline brand and am very happy with it.Good size. Some foreign matter ,but not much.Got it fom Lowe's also .