David Hare-Scott wrote
Rod Speed wrote
FarmI wrote
Jeßus wrote
Jeßus wrote

Based on past experiences, I tend to agree with the lady author you know.

Hard to put into words why - perhaps it just 'beds down' better
compared to the stiffer, fresher/bulkier material and so forms a
more effective covering, whilst at the same time providing some
organic material, bacteria etc. to the soil more quickly?

Is what you you are using straw of hay? The two are not the same, they come form different sources, have
different content and behave differently.

Hmm...

Well, So far I've been using a random mixture of small quantities
of straw/hay since moving here rather than a consistent type of
hay or straw from a regular source. I'll be ordering a large
amount pretty soon though.

I *have* recently used a few bales of fresh 'oat straw', which I've
found is good to protect freshly transplanted plants (especially
sensitive young seedlings) from the sun and wind.

All seedlings will do better with some mulch rather than none.

Thats very arguable if you dont care about the water use.

I don't want to argue for the sake of it but even if you have an
infinite supply of cheap water you cannot always be there to apply it and timers do not adapt to weather conditions
unless you have a very sophisticated setup with moisture sensors.

The only real effect of that is to use more water that you didnt actually need to apply.

Mulch will help retain moisture

Yes, but that doesnt matter if you dont care about the water you use.

and cool the soil, both are useful,

Not necessarily.

without attention.

Also as mulch degrades it feeds the soil and improves its texture.

It can also make things worse.