Pine needles are a great mulch. There is no need to grind or mow them. Just keep in mind that they are acidic so unless you're mulching rhododendrons, etc., you may have to keep an eye on the pH.

They aren't acidic. They do take a while to break down, and there aren't going to be nearly enough of them.

You should have no problem using them in your lasagna beds. I have some of my own I plan on raking up and piling onto a new bed I started a few weeks ago. I've never had a problem with Ph either.

OK.I give up. What is a lasagna bed?
To me lasagna is a tasty Italian dish.

>OK.I give up. What is a lasagna bed?
To me lasagna is a tasty Italian dish.

It is a tasty Italian dish, Chazy.

It's also a cutsey term that is often used to describe anything from mulch to thick sheet-composting to a method of making a raised bed without benefit of soil and allegedly with no work. It comes from the "Lasagna Gardening" book which pretty much is a rehash of some tried and true methods of Ruth Stout and other permenant mulch advocates, sandwiched around a lot of "mid-life journey" stuff that is of little use in the garden, but saved the author the trouble of writing two real books. Just my humble reviewer's opinion.

Chazy - Check out "Creating A New Bed Without Tilling" on the "Soil, Compost and Mulch" FAQ forum. It works, and several layers of newspaper are good for keeping weeds at bay during the growing season. This has been discussed at length on the Cottage Gardens forum as well.

Carol

Thankyou Curmudgeon and Wantoretire. These forums are so educational! The method sounds like a possibility for my asparagus bed,and heaven knows I have lots of old newspapers.

Nancy