You've got it right, freshly ground-up trees need to decompose before going close to plants. (Unless there's some secret lasagna technique that I don't know, where it's at the bottom of the pile and it's ok to plant over it) The mulch pile will actually heat up like a compost pile. It also reduces the nitrogen available nearby as it decomposes. And, some trees have "chemical-warfare" ingredients to discourage other trees from growing nearby, and that can really affect your flower beds. 2 such trees are black walnut and "tree of heaven."

Personally, I wouldn't mind using fresh stuff to make a path that was a couple of feet away from plants, but that's it.

thanks! I thought that would be the answer.

I guess I could make the beds now then wait for decomp to do its thing then plant next spring.

Karen

I use fresh woodchips as mulch all the time. In most cases, I sift them with a 1/2" screen, and use the smaller chips. I don't mix them into the soil, but use them only on top as mulch. The only place there is a temporary use of Nitrogen by decomposing wood is right at the surface of the soil, which is well away from the root zone of most plants.

If you're going to do that, it might make it harder to plant in next spring, because of all the wood chunks. Also, if you need to do any ammending, do it now. I always add sand and compost before any kind of mulch, due to all the clay. I wouldn't use more than a couple of inches of wood chip mulch.

Karen,
I would certainly wait. The wood mulch I use is a year old from the landfill. They ask if you want new or old when you go. Some people like the new for paths, etc. The old stuff is best for mulch. After you spread the mulch over the bed, toss in some alfalfa pellets. This will add back some of the nitrogen being depleted as the pile composts. Fresh mulch also brings lots of pillbugs and slugs. So next spring, as you're planting, toss on some Diatomaceous earth. This will get rid of the pests that aren't really wanted since the decomposition should have already happened. Hungry pillbugs eat seedlings too.

thanks everyone! this is a big help! I was only planning on a small amount of the mulch. I will see if it is worth the trouble waiting to plant and worrying about burning plants.

It might be a better idea just to get the older mulch from a store.

I did also read somewhere about the alfalfa pellets to add to the garden bed. I might just have to get those plus some other goodies like coffee grounds and manure.

I have a message in to a local horse farm to see if they have any manure I can get for free. If they do I know it will need to compost before planting but I figure it would help with the soil and attract some of the worms to the area.

Karen

Karen:

If you call around to different stables, you may find one that piles it up for awhile and has older stuff. Usually the old stuff goes in March/April, though. I used Google maps to find all the stables near me, and just phoned them all.

Donn, I spread a thin layer of fresh stuff on one of my beds one year, and only later found out about the tree of heaven problem--after that garden sucked all summer. Tree of heaven is everywhere in my neighborhood, but perhaps you don't have any around you. (In addition to killing or inhibiting neighboring vegetation, the chemical it produces has also been linked to heart problems in young healthy people who cut the trees down and get exposed to the sap. Fun stuff.)

Karen, just be aware that alfalfa pellets will attract slugs. That's why you use Diatomaceous earth in conjunction.

thanks for all the info!

I really do appreciate all the help I get here...

I also read a bunch of posts on the soil, compost and mulch form for info.

I will add the alfalfa with caution. I certainly do not want to attract the bunnies back to my yard :)

I think I might pass on the fresh mulch after all the info I have gotten.

If I had a larger yard where I could pile it and let it decompose for a year or more that might be more ideal.

I just got an email from the horse farm near me, the said I can have all the manure I want and it is aged and mixed with straw. This one I cannot pass up :)

Thanks again everyone!! all of you are so smart!
Karen

Like donn, I'd use that free wood chip mulch as a top layer. It will look nice (better than just a hump of rotting garbage) and keep lighter weight lasagna ingredients from blowing away.

Wood mulch is my favorite top layer for lasagna.

Karen

thanks!

I like the idea of mulch as a top dressing too! that is what I usually do... Also it can help hide the manure and straw :)