Pine - 20 year old, exposed to elements - Can this be mulched for gardens or compost?

Looking for information on pine wood - Lots and lots on the property we are on, 20 years old, exposed to elements, some rotten etc. Can this be mulched to use in a garden or for fertilizer? Any info would be much appreciated

Not sure how decayed it would be by now, so much of the nutrients may have already leached out.  Wood underground tends to draw in nitrogen away from your plants, so I wouldn't mulch and mix it into your soil.  

Two more reasonable uses:
-Mulch it and use it as actual surface mulch to suppress weeds.  Wood on the surface has much less of a nitrogen effect than buried wood.
-If you do bury it, then it can be used in a hugelculture setup (either mounds or raised beds).  You bury whole logs instead of mulch and while it breaks down, it acts as a sponge, absorbing water when there is plenty and releasing water when it is dry.  The rotting wood also feeds insects and microbial life.  As long as you have a thick layer of dirt over the wood, it would minimize the nitrogen drain effect for those plants.

I use pine branches and needles as mulch a lot. It seems to work well. It will add carbon (the base of organic matter) more than any other nutrient. It does not seem to acidify the soil (the living trees do that with root exudates). If buried for hugelkulture, I would use it in as close to its living form (not chipped) as possible to avoid the nitrogen deficit mentioned above. On the surface, the 79% N that makes up our atmosphere with provide ample N for decomposition without deficits. Have it either on the surface or completely buried to avoid moisture wicking.

Ben Zumeta wrote:I use pine branches and needles as mulch a lot. It seems to work well. It will add carbon (the base of organic matter) more than any other nutrient. It does not seem to acidify the soil (the living trees do that with root exudates).

I could've saved myself some $ and labor by figuring this out 10 years ago. Most internet search engines would lead you to believe the opposite (last time I looked). The region I reside in is called "The Pineywoods" and it's abundant. The oldest, most worn down pines here are phenomenal for mulch or hugel. I've made charcoal out of them as well. There was a huge pine stump on our fence row I was grabbing bits of wood from for a few years that was harboring all kinds of critters, including the biggest scorpion ever seen on our property. I went all in this year after I deduced I'd actually been misled, and mulched some beds with close to 100% pine straw. The few beds I planted in this year are all doing great. Thanks for contributing to bringing awareness that pine straw mulch ain't gonna turn your garden into an acidic wasteland. On the contrary the soil beneath a pine canopy underneath the last 2-3 years of accumulated pine straw, is some of the darkest most fertile looking soil I've seen around here and its full of worms. Compare that to the clay soil in parts of my yard I'd break a shovel in if I tried to penetrate it. And the rock hard clay and fertile pine forest I'm comparing are maybe 50 yards apart. The answers are often right in front of us.

The fluffiest, crumbliest, most broken down pine gets added to my controlled compost and turns into humus relatively quickly.

This is the scale of wood on the property that we hope we could use or turn some kind of income from it, was left over from a previous mill.

Any ideas are welcomed 🙏🏻

Dellie Robichaud wrote:This is the scale of wood on the property that we hope we could use or turn some kind of income from it, was left over from a previous mill.

Any ideas are welcomed 🙏🏻

Ahhh....  Thanks for the pictures.  Didn't have a good idea of the scale you are working with.  So the ideas listed above aren't terribly relevant.  If you have a heavy duty chipper, they could possibly be turned into mulch and sold that way.  The smaller boards would likely be able to go directly into the chipper.  The logs would have to be chopped up first.

Hopefully, some others will be able to offer additional insight/suggestions.  Good luck.

Still need more input...
1. about where are you located - not specifically, but knowing whether you're on high plains with minimal rain vs the wet coast will get more place  appropriate suggestions!
2. what are your personal goals for the land? Animals, food forest, market garden, other? Approximate size you will be farming?
3. you mention making money - again, do you need a product you can sell locally, or do you have a big city just over the horizon? Who will be your market?
4. yes, some will likely be rotted, judging by the pile, but generally, is there sound wood there?
5. even the cut off bits look like there's good wood within the mess - that makes me think fence boards for short or medium term wind protection or animal containment. Some idea of the general length will help people suggest things.
6. what sort of time can you commit to make something work?  Value added is where most of the money is in wood, but adding value takes time.

That is a huge carbon source, and most farmland is short on carbon, so I wouldn't want to see it leave your land "just to get it out of the way". I'd do lots of tall hugels before doing that, if you have the space to do that. Simple junk-pile fences to contain critters in or exclude them will eventually decay into good soil for planting forage trees or fruit trees. I'm a long term sort of thinker - what will that wood turn into in another 10 years and can you help it get there in a way that's beneficial for you and the land?

Have you read this thread:  101 Things to do with a pile of sticks   https://permies.com/wiki/155855/pile-sticks

I've heard that the most nutritious woodchips are made from small fresh branches.
The cut slabs might have higher uses.

If a given slab lacked structural integrity, I would use in a hugel , whole or in the base of a raised bed, preferably chipped.

If it has structural integrity I would sheath raised beds,barns or sheds with it.

I know pine is often not prized for heating the home,and these slabs will probably have a lot of bark on them,but if they are dry and not buggy, you could market them as campfire bundles.

It should burn well in a rocket stove as well.
Making it into charcoal is another option, probably my favorite.
There are so many uses for char, on and off a homestead.

The soil under those piles will probably be incredible.