[CANUFNET] To Mulch or Not To Mulch

Thu Mar 31 12:17:36 EDT 2011

Hi Terri and everyone,

Interesting discussion, and I know you wanted to hear from municipalities on
this issue, but I thought I would weigh in, as my company has planted
thousands of trees for several different municipalities, home and acreage
owners, in all sorts of situations in the last 11 years. 

We consistently use mulch, do corrective root pruning on container stock at
planting time, remove the top two rings on wire baskets and always plant on
the high side, to compensate for trees being generally too deep in the
rootball, especially when we receive stock from other growers. We use mulch
for vegetation control and water conservation in our nursery, and rake this
back before harvesting our own trees. We sometimes use an organic fertilizer
and/or a Myke product if the soils we are planting into are poor or severely
disturbed. I have lost and replaced about 6 trees in eleven years; which
works out to less than a tenth of one per cent. Compare this to the 20, 30
per cent or more mortality per year for some other companies I know of that
are completely ignorant or choose to ignore proper planting methods.

I would suggest that the 'rooting up into mulch" phenomena might just be
more of a concern in the biologically more active soils of warmer climates.

Last week, the LANTA Grower's Group voted in favor of a motion to begin a
funding process for scientific research into planting methods over the next
several years. Hopefully, the results of this research will provide more
than just anecdotal evidence for northern growers and tree managers in a few
years time.

Regarding weed control, we just purchased an "Aquacide" unit that uses
super-heated water to safely cook unwanted vegetation. It is safe to use
close to the trunks of trees, near water and in playgrounds. One treatment
lasts about 5 to 7 weeks, about the same as round-up. The Town of Olds, and
the City of Winnipeg are two municipalities that currently use this system.

Best regards,

Gerard

ForTreeslogocolourTC_logo_English

Gerard Fournier

Board Certified Master Arborist #PR-0130BT

Tree Canada Community Advisor- Alberta

President

For Trees Company Ltd.

1-877-390-TREE (toll-free)

http://www.fortrees.ca <http://www.fortrees.ca/> 

From: canufnet-bounces at list.web.net [mailto:canufnet-bounces at list.web.net]
On Behalf Of terri smith
Sent: March-31-11 8:34 AM
To: Canufnet Canufnet
Subject: Re: [CANUFNET] To Mulch or Not To Mulch

We are planting in individual holes which are surrounded by turf.  I spoke
with Ed Gilman and Hannah Mathers after their talks and they both agreed
there is little benefit to mulching beyond the tree wells in this case.
Each year, we remove grass from around the tree wells so mower/trimmer
damage is not an issue because they don't need to mow anywhere near the
trunk.  Applying 2-2.5 inches of mulch outside the tree well is not
sufficient for weed control.  We have been using 3 inches of mulch for years
now and each year we are required to weed the mulched area because weed
seeds blow into the mulch and germinate, we also find ourselves removing
grass that continues to grow under the mulch.

I am curious to know what type of organic mulch you have been using.  We
only have access to wood chips and it has been proven time and again that
wood chips take nitrogen from the soil.  I understand leaf litter benefiting
native tree stands however wood chips are an entirely different matter. 

Thank you for directing me to the Illinois conference.  This is a paradigm
shift and as always, it is stimulating a lot of debate, which is good.  We
will be changing our practices this year and pulling mulch off the tree
wells, not removing it entirely.  Whether we discontinue mulching altogether
is another matter and it will depend on further findings.

Terri Smith
Urban Forestry
City of Saskatoon    

> From: aschill at oldscollege.ca
> To: canufnet at list.web.net
> Date: Thu, 31 Mar 2011 07:41:49 -0600
> Subject: Re: [CANUFNET] To Mulch or Not To Mulch
> 
> Landscape Below Ground III was held in Illinois in 2008 and there were
several presentations and demonstrations about mulches. I would highly
recommend purchasing the proceedings. Basically, organic mulches improve
shoot growth, root growth, as well as soil physical chemical and biological
properties. I was amazed to see how quickly an urban soil (compacted, layers
of different fill soils, etc..) was able to develop some structure under a
mulched situation.
> 
> Ed Gilman is one of the editors of the proceedings. I too have recently
heard Ed talk about mulches and I think there may be some misunderstanding.
What he said was it was not beneficial to place mulch directly on the
rootball surface at planting but, by all means, mulch to the rootball. I
don't think that deviates too much from our practices unless we are still
planting individual trees in individual holes surrounded by turf. It's worth
testing. Anytime you plant large mulched beds with several trees, remove the
mulch from the surface of the root ball on some trees and not to the rest.
Let the rest of us know your findings.
> Anita Schill, PAg.
> RCA #421
> ________________________________________
> From: canufnet-bounces at list.web.net [canufnet-bounces at list.web.net] On
Behalf Of pwynnyczuk at richmondhill.ca [pwynnyczuk at richmondhill.ca]
> Sent: Wednesday, March 30, 2011 1:30 PM
> To: Canadian Urban Forest Network
> Subject: Re: [CANUFNET] To Mulch or Not To Mulch
> 
> Hi Terri,
> What happens to exposed soil around the base of the tree or anywhere,
.....erosion, soil compaction...heat build up...are these factors that
affect recently planted trees survival?
> No mulch, could attract weed seeds, which then germinate and attract
string trimmers....
> 
> A couple of inches helps address the above and allows for the creeping of
grass to the base of the trees over a few years.
> This is based on a few years of Blvd tree planting.
> 
> Look forward to the continuation of this question.
> 
> Regards,
> Peter Wynnyczuk
> 
> Urban Forestry Supervisor
> Town of Richmond Hill
> Community Services Department
> Telephone: 905 780-2930
> Fax: 905 780-2928
> Internet: pwynnyczuk at richmondhill.ca
> 
> 
> 
> 
> From: terri smith <janedatsun at hotmail.com>
> To: Canufnet Canufnet <canufnet at list.web.net>
> Date: 03/30/2011 02:57 PM
> Subject: [CANUFNET] To Mulch or Not To Mulch
> Sent by: canufnet-bounces at list.web.net
> ________________________________
> 
> 
> 
> I would like to know if there are any municipalities that have stopped
applying mulch on newly planted boulevard trees. Current research indicates
that mulch should not be placed over the root ball because it causes roots
to grow up into the mulch area, it also causes roots to remain within the
root ball area instead of growing out laterally, and it actually prevents
the water from penetrating deep into the soil. Dr. Ed Gilman and Dr. Hannah
Mathers both agree that no more than 2 - 2.5 inches of mulch should be
applied outside of the root ball area (if mulch is still going to be
applied) and both are in agreement that mulch provides no benefit to the
tree. At 2 inches of mulch there is little to no weed suppression.
> 
> These new findings contradict our current mulching practices and have
created much debate within our department. I would like to hear from other
municipalities that have either discontinued mulching or have never mulched
their blvd trees. Is there a need to increase the amount or frequency of
watering?
> 
> Terri Smith
> Urban Forestry
> City of Saskatoon
> 

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