From David Beaulieu,
Your Guide to Landscaping.
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Which of the various types of mulch will best suit your needs? To make that decision, you need to consider the qualities of the different types of mulch and start weighing their pros and cons.

A. Besides bark mulches, the following types of mulches are widely used:

• pine needle and leaf mulches (for free!)
• hay or straw mulches
• crushed stone mulches
• wood chips
• black plastic sheets or other synthetic mulches

Among natural types of mulches, the bark mulches and the crushed stone mulches are perhaps the most attractive.

For a breakdown of the pros and cons of bark mulches and other types of mulches, please consult "Garden Mulch."

An advantage of having wooded acreage and owning a wood chipper is that you can use the wood chipper to make your own wood-chip mulch. After chipping up wood to be used as a mulch, people usually compost the chips first. A word of warning, however....

According to the UMass Extension service, wood-chips destined to be used as mulch should not be piled up higher than 10 feet in the compost bin. Exceeding that height can cause the pH of your mulch to become overly acidic -- perhaps to the point even of damaging plants that come in contact with it.

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