Whether you are a fan of pine needle tea or want a home-based natural business, knowing how to harvest pine needles, and process and store them, is part of satisfying either goal. There are many pine needle uses in the landscape: as a weed repellent, mulch, soil acidifier, and even to line paths and stabilize soil. Read on for some tips on harvesting pine needles for edible, medicinal, or outdoor garden use.
Pine Needle Uses
Gardeners with pine trees in the yard may consider the debris from dropped needles a nuisance, however, these conifer leaves are actually useful in many different ways. Why should you harvest pine needles? The needles make excellent fire starters, flavoring for teas and vinegars, grill smoke to season meats, air fresheners, and, of course, mulch. They have many medicinal properties as well. Collecting pine needles and processing them correctly can help you harness any of these natural properties.
Pine straw is often sold cleaned and bailed to use in the landscape. Care should be taken when collecting pine needles to keep them free of weeds and debris. Layers of the straw mulch will conserve moisture, enrich soil, and help reduce weed growth. They also help enhance the acidity of soil for such plants as hydrangea, azalea, and holly.
The scent can help repel certain insect and animal pests from digging in the garden as well. Outside of garden use, a tea made from the leaves is not only delicious but the scent can help clear sinuses. Cooled, the tea is used as a cleaner and deodorizer. The needles have antibacterial properties which can help fight certain skin diseases when used as a foot soak. These tree cast-offs are helpful in many household uses.
How to Harvest Pine Needles
If you plan on making pine mulch, keep the area under the trees free of weeds and other debris. That way when you rake up the needles they will be relatively clean, as the plants shed between August and January. Pine needles break down slowly and can be used as a mulch but also to line paths and don’t need replacing as often as other organic amendments. Leave some of the needles as a bed around the tree roots to help nourish the trees and prevent moisture loss and excessive weeds.
Spread out the needles to let them dry if they will be bailed for storage or for sale. For instant use, just move the needles to the location where they will be needed and spread a thick layer.
When harvesting pine needles, consider their purpose– not all needles have to come strictly from pines. For teas, it’s best to harvest needles fresh from the tree, and few trees are better than Douglas fir. The needles are high in Vitamin C and make a healing soak for arthritis. Spruce tea is also tasty and can be made into a zingy beer. Redwood needles have antimicrobial properties that may be beneficial when treating colds and flu.
Just remember to ascertain whether trees were treated with chemicals and avoid those which were, especially for consumption purposes. If you want pine straw for mulch, the type of tree isn’t as important, but blue spruce needles are very sharp and make barefoot trekking a painful journey. Any pine, however, makes excellent garden amendments.
FAQs
Once pine needles have decomposed completely, either by naturally breaking down or via composting (more on composting pine needles later), they are completely neutral in PH. Because of that, once they are, you can use them near almost any vegetable or flower plant without worry.
Can I use pine needles in my vegetable garden? ›
Once pine needles have decomposed completely, either by naturally breaking down or via composting (more on composting pine needles later), they are completely neutral in PH. Because of that, once they are, you can use them near almost any vegetable or flower plant without worry.
Are dead pine needles good for the garden? ›
As pine needles break down and are incorporated into the soil, decomposing organisms gradually neutralize them. Thus, there is no harm in using pine needles to mulch shrub borders, flower beds and vegetable gardens. Even a 2 to 3 inch layer of pine mulch will not change the soil pH enough to measure.
Can I till pine needles into my garden? ›
Because pine needles break down slowly, they are not useful additives to turn directly into garden soils. Best to use them as a top dressing on flower gardens, around roses, and places where weed and moisture control are desired.
Should you rake or mow pine needles? ›
The best way to clean them is to get a leaf blower or rake. These are more effective methods because groups of pine needles can become dense and more difficult to go over with a mower.
Should I rake pine needles or leave them? ›
Pine and fir needles should be raked off hard surfaces such as pavement, decks, rooftops, gutters, and gravel-covered surfaces, and removed from the soil within 30 feet of all structures. Fallen branches and pine cones should be picked up throughout the property.
Are pine needles OK around tomato plants? ›
Pine needle mulch is a great mulch option around tomatoes. There is a belief that the pine needles will change the pH of the soil but UT Extension Horticulture Specialist Carol Reese says it will not change it enough to matter. The mulch will reduce splashing on the lower leaves of the plant which will reduce blight.
Do pine needles keep bugs away? ›
Most insects do not care for the smell of pine and so pine needles can be used to repel problem bugs and pests, too. For widespread repelling, spread a layer of pine straw all over the ground throughout your garden, targeting areas where insect pests are especially a problem.
Do pine needles attract termites? ›
Pine straw mulch is one of the least likely types of mulch to attract termites. Pine straw is made from pine needles, which are not a food source for termites. This type of mulch is also not as dense as other types of mulch, so it does not provide the same level of protection for termites.
Should I leave pine needles for mulch? ›
If you have access to free pine needles, by all means rake them up and use them liberally on your garden. They not only make great mulch but are a good addition to the compost pile as well.
8 Brilliant Uses for Fallen Pine Needles
- CREATE FIRE STARTERS. Bundle a handful of dry needles with thread to use along with kindling wood and newspaper. ...
- USE AS MULCH. ...
- MAKE A DISINFECTANT. ...
- FLAVOR VINEGAR. ...
- BREW A FOOTBATH. ...
- COOK WITH THEM. ...
- FRESHEN UP A ROOM. ...
- FILL OUTDOOR PILLOWS.
The pine needles break down more slowly than other organic matter in a compost pile, even when the pile is hot, so limit them to 10 percent of the total volume of the pile. A simple and natural way of composting pine needles is to simply leave them where they fall, allowing them to serve as a mulch for the pine tree.
How long does it take for pine needles to decompose? ›
That being said, it's clear that the acid nature of pine needles should have little effect on the resulting acidity of compost. Even if you use green or freshly fallen pine needles, they lose their acidity and become fairly neutral after approximately three weeks.
Should you vacuum up pine needles? ›
Vacuum cleaner – while this is the first thing that most people turn to, to clean up pine needles, it's not such a great idea, because being sticky, the needles tend to build up in the tube, causing a blockage before even reaching the vacuum bag or canister.
Can I use my shop vac to pick up pine needles? ›
The hassle of cleaning after a camping trip can quickly erase the serenity of the great outdoors. Luckily, your Shop-Vac makes cleaning up camping equipment a breeze. Vacuum pine needles, sand, leaves, cobwebs, and whatever other debris makes its way into your tent with a Shop-Vac.
What happens if I dont pick up pine needles? ›
While leaves that have fallen from trees can be easily raked up, blown away, or crushed underfoot, pine needles lie in ever-growing mats on the ground and are more difficult to remove. If left in place they choke the life from grass or flowers planted beneath a tree.
