Acidic mulch.

[karl66]

I'm on good term's with a local tree surgeon who sometimes top's my log's up for the woodburner, anyway he's recently dropped me 3 ton of wood chip's off for some new paths i've created, i've also put some around my bamboo's but have not dug it in yet as i want it to cool off a bit first, the mulch was off eucaliptus tree's & conifers, do i need to neutralise it? karl.

[Caprier]

Don't know about the conifer chippings, karl, but eucalyptus leaves and twigs are reputed to inhibit growth of other plants and this is borne out in my experience of nothing much growing at the feet of eucalyptus trees.
Any woody material used as a mulch will use up available nitrogen in the process of decomposition, so it would be worth sprinkling a high-nitrogen fertiliser under the mulch to compensate.

[Tom2006]

I would get rid asap. Both are known to seriously inhibit growth. Bark of any type also removes nitrogen. I only use a bit mixed with good compost and rotted manure mixed up.

[flounder]

Its ideal for pathways as it'll be a year or two before weed seeds get a grip. Being fresh chippings i wouldn't recommend for mulching plants, but having said that I'm sure you feed your plants during the growing season so that will counteract the nitrogen use.

[karl66]

Many thanks. I think i shall make circles around all the bamboo's & fern's which i have already put some on so when i feed them the nutrient's drain straight through the soil as opposed to feeding the top of the chipping's! karl.

[Dim]

here is an interesting artcle as regards eucalyptus mulch:
http://mrec.ifas.ufl.edu/foliage/resrpts/rh_91_13.htm

a good practise before using any mulch for the 1st time, is to add an inch or two of compost on the soil before adding the mulch ontop .... this only needs to be done the 1st time ....

the wood is then not in direct contact with the soil, so nitrogen leaching is not a problem .... the bark eventually decomposes and becomes compost, and the following year, you just add another layer of bark mulch ontop of that, so there is always a protective layer/barrier of compost between the soil and the mulch at all times

we are lucky here in cambridge, as we can get compost for free, and as much as we want (compost made from the green recycle bins):
http://www.ameycespa.com/east/social-free-compost
it's ok for adding as a barrer for the mulch

buy a cheap ph kit and do a test of the eucalyptus mulch to determine the ph (some articles state that the ph is neutral?) .... there are oils etc in the eucalyptus mulch which deters insects, so i'd be a bit weary of using it (in parts of south africa, there are loads of eucalyptus, but I have never ever seen anyone using the bark as a mulch ....

I do know that the eucalyptus leaves kill off everything at the base of the trees

[Tom2006]

The nutrient reduction won't be an issue so much as the these would chips will seriously stunt the plant growth.