Does anyone grow plants just to use for mulch. I live in central Phoenix so access to bales of hay is not that easy, so I am thinking of growing my own plants to use for mulch. I want a plant that will not attract bad bugs to the gardens. Any ideas on what plants would be the most benificial?
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yes
we 'grow' numerous items for mulching / nutrient accumulation fixation:
mulching biomass / chop + drop:
prosopis - mesquite (tree / shrub / nitrogen fixer / edible pods / mulch biomass)
bamboo (tree / shrub / mulch biomass)
johnson's grass (invasive / perennial / mulch biomass)
bacharis desert broom (woody / invasive / perennial / mulch biomass)
palm trees (woody / mulch biomass)
artichoke (regenerative / perennial)
summer pruning (pommes + stone fruit) yield large amounts of mulch material due to dwarfing by summer pruning - (4) helpings of 18" of growth during the summer months
we also grow 'living green mulch' plants:
clover (nitrogen fixer / winter spring / fall / annual + perennial? + regenerative?)
winter pasture mix - oats wheat rye (winter / annuals or perennials? or regenerative? / biomass / chicken forage)
mint (invasive / perennial / bee forage)
bermuda grass (invasive)
grapes (fruit / climbing shade / biomass)
we also grow 'green manure (plants as nutrient)' crops:
clover (nitrogen fixer / winter spring / fall / annual + perennial? + regenerative?)
fava beans (nitrogen fixer / annual winter spring crop)
prosopis - mesquite (tree / shrub / nitrogen fixer / edible pods / mulch biomass)
alfalfa also ... this year (multi-year perennial / nitrogen fixer / mulch biomass / animal fodder or forage)
VPA will be teaching a class on alternative soil building strategies that will introduce some of these larger scale regenerative methods ... including growing plants for mulching purposes ... stay tuned ...
Great information, Jeff!
Sheri, I wish I had access to horse manure.
I am also going to try paper bags. I might shred them so I don't provide a new home for the snails.
I am still trying to think of a way to use the mesquite pods. I might throw a party so all the neighborhoods kids could come over and crush the seeds.
Great list Bryan an excellent combination of the various "things" to build soil. FYI for all beware of the mint monster - it can make bermuda look easy to handle (saying that after Deane had to dig the equivalent of tree trunk mass out of a bed for me :-)
I learned the mint lesson a number of years back. I planted spearmint and peppermint. The peppermint wasn't a problem, but BOY did the other take over!! So now I have it in a pot.
Thanks Jeff, I might take you up on your offer, I sent you an add friend request so I can send you a message. Is there a feed store anywhere near downtown? Do they sell burlap bags?
Bryan, Great list and it is very helpful. I have mint, grapes, artichokes, oats, mesquite and fava beans.
I also have catnip, I bet that would work too.
I think my Chia experiment might be fruitful. I planted some in the front yard because I thought they would have pretty flowers. Wrong. They are now dropping their leaves and creating their own mulch. Plus I think they would be great shade plants to plant under.
good ideas! I can always use a little extra brown in my compost
Grace, I live downtown and have a truck and make trips to feed stores and such. If you ever wanted something I can grab it for you and drop it off. until you can get some of these plants growing and become self-sufficient.
That is a challenge, Grace. Any things I can think of would be flowering/seeding and I'm not sure that you would want that. Are you collecting leaves from any deciduous trees you have on the property?
That's a good idea. When we need them for our compost, we get the leaves that our neighbor's landscapers collect from their trees. They bag it and have to dispose of it, so its easier on them just to drop them off with us.
Deane has been raking the leaves into the tree wells for years. If I want some for say my potato bed I just go over and take what I want. If I want 'compost' I dig down nearer the soil where the leaves have composted down some or all the way. I also add some occasionally to my compost pile.
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