Thanks Ken, I'll use it right away then.

The only caveat to consider is that its not ideal to do so on younger shallow root trees. If we’re talking older trees then I’m with Ken just put down when convenient

ok,,,, you can still put it under shallow rooted trees ... just dont go with the suggestion of going thick .... just enough to cover soil.. to reduce weeds ...

willow is a rather soft wood.. and will break down rather fast ... so its not a great mulch ... it should never be burned indoors.. because it burns so hot and fast ...

but this is a brilliant way to get rid of it ...

ken

It actually doesn't burn hot and fast but it doesn't produce nearly as many BTUs per cord as other wood. It makes great kindling.

Thin mulch layers will encourage weed seed germination I would still put it on around 3-4" thick.

Keep it off the stems.

If I use composte around my garden next spring, do I still mulch on top of it? Am trying to keep slug free as possible.

Yes.

We had an ice storm several years back that broke massive amount of limbs and downed trees. The city chipped up the limbs and had piles of hardwood chips around the city free for the taking that they would load for you. We were told that it would be best to let the chips age for a season before using as a mulch barrier. Something about fresh chips leached Nitrogen out of the soil or something like that. Our tree guy said to let the pine trees he cut and chipped up lay for a year before applying as well. So that's what we did. YMMV.

The Foxes seemed to enjoy them.

Nitrogen is only an issue if the chips are mixed into soil. But I have seen mulch piles heat up quite a bit, and I am not sure how thick a layer of mulch has to be to start heating up as it breaks down.

"If I use composte around my garden next spring, do I still mulch on top of it?"

Only if you want to. I consider the compost itself perfectly adequate to serve as mulch and use it exclusively for that purpose. I see no reason to add another layer and I much prefer the rich, fluffy black look of compost over wood chips or bark mulch.

Do you use mushroom compost? That was recommended by someone on the hosta forum.

I have two big truck loads of fresh mixed wood chips delivered per year from a local arborist. I like his chips! Perfect size, free from excess leaves, no surprises. It gets distributed to all of the mulched areas in my landscape and veggie gardens within a few days of delivery.

No, I use municipal yard waste compost. Mushroom compost tends to be unfavorable for acid loving plants, of which I have a great deal. And it is far more expensive than yard waste compost, especially if you can make the compost yourself ( I use way more than I can generate myself).

In my area the two most common mulches under acid loving plants are mushroom compost and hardwood bark. Mushroom compost is the output of the facilities who grow the mushrooms we buy in the grocery stores. In this area they grow the mushrooms in abandoned coal mines so the facilities are cheap and common, and so is the mushroom compost.

The hardwood bark is preferred because the color doesn't change as the season progresses. The mushroom compost is preferred by those who have more complex gardens than a couple rhododendrons or azaleas in front of the house.

In my community they collect leaves in the fall and in the spring dump a big pile of the leaf compost at a central place where you can help yourself. I can't make myself use this stuff as it's full of plastic bags from the grocery store. Who would collect leaves and stuff them in such a tiny bag, but they do. I get the picture of someone collecting leaves in their purse, transferring them to a plastic bag. But then I wonder what else is in that "leaf compost". In some areas they mix in the municipal sewage sludge.