Grass clippings are the way to go IMO. I have tried straw in the past and it doesn't break down fast enough for me - (it looks the same the following year), plus it often has seeds in it and its also not dense enough to provide enough benefit for the effort...There are reasons straw is used with growing grass seed... Grass clippings, however, do everything a mulch is supposed to do(including look good) plus its free. It does require some work though... We have a 5 acre yard so we have some grass...When cutting the yard(and needing "mulch") we try to gather/direct about 6 riding mower widths of clippings at a time and let that dry in the sun for a day or two, before we rake it and move to the garden. With a push mower, you could dump & spread your bagged grass onto a tarp to dry - we have done this in our barn if rain is expected. When the clippings are dry to the touch and starting to brown, then its ready to use by plants and greener clippings can be used to "fill in" other areas. I have used it for the last ten years. I have never had any burning problems and it breaks down for tilling by next spring. Incedently, the clipppings will not "introduce" new weeds or new grass problems in your garden...We have clippings under almost everything in the garden from tomatoes and peppers to corn. I also have it under young trees in the yard. Just like the old lady in the Frank's Red Hot Sauce commercial says: "We use that s#!t on everything...". Theres only so much grass I can put in my compost pile so I have found other uses. I also have a pine cone trail...on the same note. I do buy the "real" mulch though for use around the house though lol. Grass clippings and hostas doesn't quite work for me.

Olpea, if you don't like the invigorating affect of woodchips (and, as you know, it is an issue that also concerns me with mature fruit trees) you may hate the invigoration caused by hay mulch with its higher N content. Straw might be an exception to this problem. Voles love both. Hay really pushes growth in my nursery when I use it, seemingly more than chips. I doubt this excessive invigoration is an issue where there isn't much rain during the last couple months of the ripening process if you keep the trees a bit thirsty. I'm going to do some experimentation with woven fabric covered by white course gravel (small stones) to see if reflected light is helpful here. I realize that would not be practical for a large number of trees, but it may be a semi-permanent solution and the gravel might create problems for the voles by pouring into their tunnels. Most of all, the reflected light might reduce fungus pressure and push up brix. I have a customer with a courtyard that is maintained with white gravel on the ground and white walls and the apples growing there have exceptionally high flavor. In 25 years of working on estates that often use large quantities of shredded wood chips and also using them in my nursery operation, I have not experienced any disease problems with wood chips either, but that doesn't mean that Drew doesn't have a good reason not to use them where he is. I do believe that woodchips are more likely to help trees through drought than become a problem. I think an awful lot of water is stored in the rotting wood that wicks into the soil by capillary pull as the soil dries. I've never lost a mulched tree to drought even without pulling it away when it becomes dry. Shredded wood is more likely to mat up in a way that repels water than chips out of the chipper. It is also more likely to tie up nitrogen because it breaks down faster. The last sentence may seem to contradict the idea of woodchips invigorating trees, but that affect occurs over time as the chips convert to a rich compost that releases N and also supports life forms that actually pull N from the atmosphere.

probably less chemical spray on what is grown as fodder hay, maybe none at all, that hay once spoilt and no good for fodder purposes makes a good nutritional mulch for the garden. even better the slashed grass we are raking closely resembles hay has no spray on it at all comes from vacant properties. surely gardeners in the US must have similar opportunities to rake and gather this sort of grass? for ornamental gardens natural wood chip bought from blokes who are tree loppers, keep it clear of the stems/trunks by about 4"s it does great. len

Hi Verandah, Greathawks and brissi555......I just happened to check the Australian Forum for tropical plants, is anyone still cultivate Plumerias/Frangipani ? I was actually in Brisbane for a month, visiting one of my sister and her families, she lives in the area of Chermside! Did any of you buy Plumerias at one of your local nurseries or from a website ? I'll be curious to know because I have 10 of them, here in the San Francisco peninsula. Well...good to know you....maybe you can check the GardenWeb Forums/Plumeria !! Hopefully I will find you in the near future, Annamaria