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from "anton" contains these words:


Stephen Birchall wrote in message ...

I have a few doz hay bales that I am thinking of using as mulch for newly
planted trees. I've not seen any info on this in the literature and am
wondering if it is a good idea or otherwise and if anybody has any useful
tips.


With hay then you'll be sowing a lot of
grass seeds and possibly encouraging voles, which can
sometimes be destructive & ring-bark new trees.

For many years I used a lot of hay mulch under the trees in our last
garden; grass growth from the seed was never a problem (but I had
chickens scrabbling in the decomposing hay for worms). But as Anton
says,don't let it become a hideout for voles where they can sit chewing
bark; keep the hay a good 6" away from young trees' trunks.Very small
trees can have the bottom of their trunks protected against voles with
tubes made from a plastic bottle.

Janet