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Pine needles for mulching are a great solution to retain moisture in the soil even during drought. A 5 cm layer perfectly retains water, preventing it from evaporating. However, there are other ways to use pine litter if there is a lot of it. Crafty summer residents have long gone beyond mulching.
Composting
Adding pine needles to your compost pile can turn them into fertilizer. This material has the added advantage that the substances released by pine needles inhibit pathogenic microflora, preventing them from developing in the compost pile.
Also, many pests do not like the pine smell, which scares them away from compost.
But there is one problem here – needles take a long time to decompose, about 3-4 years. However, with the right composting technology, the process is accelerated and takes only one and a half to two years. To speed up the maturation of compost, it is necessary to add fresh manure and soil microorganisms.
If there is no manure, urea will replace it. It can be poured over layers of organic matter or diluted in water (200 g per 10 l) and poured over the pile. Grass, kitchen waste, straw and other organic residues should also be added to the needles.
Shelters
Pine needles are ideal for winter shelter for heat-loving crops such as grapes and roses. All you need to do is bend the branches to the ground, secure them with pins, and sprinkle pine needles on top, then secure a film or spunbond over them.
The needle is also suitable for protecting roots during frosts, for example, gooseberries or young trees. You just need to pour it in a thick layer over the entire area of the trunk circle. This material, in addition to retaining heat, is inconvenient for mice and other pests to hibernate.
Save the harvest
Pine needles have a bactericidal and antiseptic effect, so they help preserve the harvest of root vegetables.
In the storage box, you need to pour a layer of dry needles 3-5 cm high, put a layer of carrots, beets or other root vegetables on top, then another layer of needles and vegetables. Continue until the box is full. With such a layer, even if rot appears on one tier (which happens rarely), it will not spread to the other.
Warm beds
Due to the needles' ability to decompose over a long period of time, they are an ideal material for filling warm beds. Mix the needles with other organic fillers and such a bed will delight with a bountiful harvest for several years.
When using natural materials on the site, you should not limit yourself to the usual scope of their application. A little imagination - and in the hands of a summer resident, even pine needles will become a functional “tool”.
