Pine trees produce A LOT of needles. If you have two or more pine trees in your yard, you’ve probably noticed these needles blanketing your landscape. With fall season upon us, this will only become more problematic.
While you can always rake and burn excess pine needles, there are other things you can use them for as well. So, check out the following uses for pine needles.
Flowerbed Mulch
Can’t seem to control the weed growth in your flowerbed? Weeds will pop up just about anywhere, and flowerbeds are no exception. If there’s a spot of uncovered ground, chances are a weed will emerge.
You can protect your flowerbed from this menace, however, by covering it with pine needles. Pine needles can be used as a mulch for flowerbeds, keeping weeds and other unwanted growth at bay.
Just remember to avoid covering your plants with it, as pine needles can also inhibit the growth of your plants.
Insect Repellent
Granted, pine trees alone won’t keep bugs away. Rather, you have to burn them to reap the benefits of its insect-repellent properties.
Professional beekeepers, for instance, often burn pine needles to control bees while inspecting the hives. It’s a readily available, low-cost solution to control insects, only one of which is bees.
Fire Starter
You might be surprised to learn that pine needles are also an excellent fire starter. Whether you are camping or looking to build a fire in your back yard, you can use pine needles to ignite it.
Simply place them around the kindling and it should make the fire easier to start.
Compost
Of course, you can also use pine needles in a compost bin. Organic compost is the perfect, all-natural “food” for plants, offering valuable nutrients to assist in growth and development.
Compost needs a combination of greens and browns, the latter of which can be pine needles. For the green ingredients, use leftover fruit and vegetable peelings. Banana peels, apple cores, expired vegetables, etc. make excellent green ingredients for a compost bin.
These are just a few of them any different uses for pine needles. Depending on how many pine trees you have in your yard, you’ll probably have more than enough needles to use for all of these applications.
So the next time you have some free time, start raking your pine needles and placing them in large bags and use them in your landscape.
The Woodsman Company offers tree planting, tree pruning and shrub trimming, tree removal and stump grinding as well as a tree wellness program.
If we can help with any of your tree care needs give us a call at 512-846-2535 or 512-940-0799 or
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