What do you do with dried 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 needles will eventually decompose and work their way down into the soil naturally. Once down there, the microbes in the soil neutralize them, removing whatever acidity they may have started out with.
In order to prevent grass and garden plant death, clear your yard of pine needles. Mowers and traditional leaf rakes won't do the job. You'll clear many more fallen pine needles a lot faster by using a lawn sweeper, a leaf blower/vacuum, or a specialized rake designed to collect pine needles.
Pine straw itself doesn't attract insects. Bugs don't eat dry pine straw, but other qualities draw in bugs including termites, centipedes and earwigs. Some of these insects help break the pine straw down, which is good for deterring weeds, but for the most part its best to keep critters away from your house.
There is no need to remove the old ground cover (bark, mulch, pinestraw). As the material breaks down, it will add organic matter and nutrients into the soil. It is like a slow release fertilizer.
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.
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.
The pine needles composting process can take about 2-3 months for the pine needles to be fully broken down.
Composting fresh pine needles could take from 5 to 6 weeks. If you want to speed up the composting process, use aged pine needles. They should be at least a few months old. For best results, compost pine needles that were used as mulch.
Nutritional Value
Pine needles are high in vitamin C; a tea made with the needles of the Pine tree has been used to stave off scurvy when no other sources of vitamin C were readily available. In a tincture or tea, Pine needles can help alleviate congestion and other respiratory problems.
Can you just mow pine needles?
In general, pine needles can be mowed using any standard lawnmower. To mow the pine needles into smaller pieces, you should use a mulching blade that has a groove to shred the needles. Because of the shape of the pine needles, they are difficult to mulch mow so. You will need a mower with a bag.
Evergreen conifers shed needles each year, but when it happens and how many needles are dropped varies by conifer species. Most trees start shedding old needles in late summer and continuing into fall; for others, it happens during spring and summer.
At such a depth, the mulch is fluffy and deep enough to burrow within, providing an ideal hidden nesting area for some rodents. Rodents nesting in pine straw mulch may chew on surrounding plant roots and stems since this food source is so convenient for them.
Get rid of mulch.
Mulch and pine straw home to several invertebrates that are a prime food source for snakes. Snakes will also use this groundcover as shelter for themselves.
Pine straw mulch often attracts roaches because it is lightweight and they can burrow within it easily. Straw also holds ample moisture for plants, and that moisture is exactly what roaches seek.
A three inch layer is the minimum needed for it to be effective in preventing weeds and conserving soil moisture. Don't pile your pine straw on too thick. Remember, 3 to 5 inches is plenty. Any more than this will not help the plants.
How often do change out your pine straw? We recommend a complete rake out and full replacement once a year. This is usually done in the Spring and once it's time for your Fall clean up, you can add to and “fluff” the existing pine straw.
Old and faded mulch or pine straw is unattractive in terms of curb appeal. You also may start noticing more problems with soil erosion and weeds if you don't replace the older materials. Mulch should be replaced and replenished every 1-2 years depending on how heavily it's been impacted by the weather and foot traffic.
Because pine needles are slow to decompose, they may accumulate to a point where grass will no longer grow. For this reason, pine needles can make an excellent mulch around trees or shrubs where you don't want grass.
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.
Why do pine needles not fall off in winter?
This special needle shape, along with a waxy coating, allows the evergreens to conserve water during summer and winter, which is needed for that continued photosynthesis process. So because they can conserve more water than their deciduous counterparts, their leaves stay green and remain attached longer.
All leaves and pine needles should be removed from the lawn by late November-early December to allow the lawn to enter snowy months “clean”. In the event the leaves do remain over the winter, an early spring cleanup is critical to help minimize any damage done by missing the fall cleanup.
If you have a limited area to rake, you can use a garden rake or a leaf rake to collect your pine straw and then move it by hand or in a garden cart. If you have a larger area and want to collect a considerable quantity of pine straw, a small tractor rake will save a tremendous amount of work.
While it is common for pine needles to turn brown and fall off during autumn months, the browning in spring is from fungi that infects the needles and produces what is known as “needlecast.”
One of the most common and most vexing is when your pine tree starts losing its needles. When this happens, it can spell the death of the tree. Unlike the leaves on deciduous trees, pine trees never regrow their needles. If the tree loses too many, it won't be able to survive.
You can spread pine straw anywhere you use other organic mulches. “Pine needle mulch is used both as a growing season surface mulch to keep weeds down and retain soil moisture, and also as a thick protective winter mulch over tender plants,” says Duford.
The pine needles shouldn't really impede the growth of the grass unless they wind up covering the ground quite thick. It is common to put straw or other cover on grass seed to protect it from too much sun, animals, erosion, etc.
The dropped needles are in such demand that a lucrative business has grown up around raking, baling and selling them to landscapers and homeowners as mulch.
In short, it comes down to personal preference. Pine straw mulch is cheaper and easier to transport as it does not require tools to spread. On the other hand, shredded mulch offers more options for color, better water retention, and stays in place better than pine straw.
Pines have relatively long needles (two to nine inches), which are held in clusters called fascicles. These needles live for two to seven years and then die and drop during the fall.
Do deer eat pine needles in the winter?
Pine trees (Pinus spp.) are rarely damaged or seldom severely damaged by deer, reports Rutgers Cooperative Extension. Still, no plant is completely deer-resistant: Hungry deer will eat just about anything, especially in the winter months when food is scarce.
Foraging for pine needles is one of those things that you can do in the winter time to connect you to nature and the wonderful living world around you.
Wet mulch, along with other common yard decorations such as pine straw and wet soil in a flower bed, can hold enough moisture below the surface to attract mosquitoes. Once mosquitoes identify an area as moist enough to lay eggs, they will nest there, and other mosquitoes will follow.
Rake leaves, grass and pine straw from the lawn areas, although pine straw or mulch can make a barrier between a woodsy, or shrubby margin, and the lawn, and is easier to spray or treat, should you decide to do that. A farmer friend says that pine trees/straw are particularly attractive to ticks.
Pine straw, on the other hand, is the dried remains of those pine needles. Once the needles have fallen off the tree, they will dry out and become brittle. And that is what we call pine straw. Pine straw is often used as mulch or packing material, and it can be a great addition to your garden.
Pine needles themselves don't provide nutrition for termites. However, pine straw will keep the ground below wet. This moisture could attract termites to your home.
There are many scents snakes don't like including smoke, cinnamon, cloves, onions, garlic, and lime. You can use oils or sprays containing these fragrances or grow plants featuring these scents.
Whether they are on your Christmas tree, a wreath or some garland, pine needles can be a problem if ingested. The needles can puncture or irritate the lining of your dog's stomach, and the oils can irritate the mucous membranes. The needles may not kill your pet, but they can make him really uncomfortable and ill.
Some household ants will nest inside if they find a favorable location. They don't build mounds but tend to nest under mulch, pine straw, landscaping timbers, logs, potted plants, firewood piles, and other debris.
Attractor #1: Food
What attracts co*ckroaches more than anything is food. Roaches need food to survive. Eliminating access to food can help eliminate a roach problem. Throw away any food that has been left out on the counter.
What is irresistible to co*ckroaches?
They are most attracted to starch, sugar, grease, meat, and cheese. Rotting fruits and vegetables can also give off a very pungent smell that will definitely attract these pests. Make sure your food is properly sealed up, and not giving off roach attracting odors.
How long pine needles take to decompose depends on whether they are fresh or dry. Fresh pine needles have a thick waxy coating that makes it even harder for the bacteria to penetrate and reach the organic materials inside the needles. Composting fresh pine needles could take from 5 to 6 weeks.
The simplest way to preserve pine for a wreath is to keep the cuttings moist. Soaking them in water; spraying them; keeping them in a controlled, humid environment and out of direct sunlight or heat should help the wreath last the holiday season.
Pour two cups of boiling water over the needles, cover the pot, and allow to steep for a few minutes. The tea will turn a pale green with a light, piney smell. Most of the needles with sink to the bottom and you can pour the tea in to a mug. It's delicious.
Pine breaks down more quickly than mulch and can be expected to last about six months. Synthetic materials can last for many years before needing to be replaced. Pine straw does not last as long as other mulches, but it has some distinct benefits.
The old trick of spraying your tree with hairspray does actually work, as it stops moisture loss through the needles – however, this in turn does make it more flammable, and is NOT recommended due to it being a fire hazard.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Don't make tea out of anything that you can't 100% identify. Some types of evergreens like Cypress and Yew trees are toxic. Also, don't drink pine needle tea if you are pregnant or nursing.
These findings suggest that ponderosa pine needles and tips are both abortifacient and toxic. Because the lesions caused by pine tips, rosin gum, and dehydroabietic acid are similar, toxicosis is most likely due to the diterpene abietane acids, common in all three.
MIT researchers found that xylem tissue from a white pine tree, when used to filter contaminated water, removed 99 percent of E. coli bacteria. The very same tissue that delivers life-giving sap to all parts of the tree also traps bacteria.
