Anyone with trees or bushes in their yard has had to deal with woody yard waste at one time or another. Outside of cities, stray branches, twigs, and clippings often end up on the burn pile. In towns, they may end up in the trash. But there are alternatives that actually make use of this extra woody material.
Recycle
There’s no good reason for yard waste to end up in landfills. Some states even have bans on setting yard waste out with your regular trash since composting it is so much better for the environment. But you still need to get the waste out of your yard, so many communities have started a yard waste recycling program.
These programs will take woody waste as well as leaves, dead plants, weeds, and grass clippings. Be sure to check with your local recycling program before giving then woody materials. Some programs only accept branches under a certain diameter. You might still need to chip or shred larger branches before recycling them.
Chip/Shred
Woody waste is much easier to use of you put it through a chipper or shredder. Not only does it take up less room once chipped or shredded, but there’s more you can do with it. When using shredders, make sure you wear eye protection and never reach into the shredder while it’s running.
You can rent chippers if you plan to use them infrequently or purchase one from a lawn equipment dealer. These machines are often very versatile, chopping everything from fallen leaves to small branches. Some professional models can even chip wood up to 9 inches in diameter.
Compost
Composting woody material can take a long time. Fairly small twigs can just be tossed on a compost pile, but shredding or chipping first is a good idea in most cases. Dry wood chips typically take three to four years to completely break down into crumbly compost.
You can help wood chips compost faster by mixing them with a nitrogen-rich material such as lawn clippings. Chips and shreds from greener/younger wood will also take less time to compost than dryer/older wood. Once the wood compost is well-rotted, you can use it just like any other compost.
Mulch
Whether or not to use wood chips for mulch has become a controversial question among gardeners. Some experts recommend avoiding wood mulches all the time, while others say it can be used with caution. Wood chips work great in areas where you’re trying to keep weeds down, such as pathways between raised garden beds. It’s just not as good a choice as compost for mulching garden soil and it should never be used around disease-prone plants like tomatoes, roses, and lilacs.
Wood from some trees, including black walnut, hickory, oak, pine, and sassafras, can stunt plant growth if you use it as mulch. If you don’t know what type of tree your wood comes from, it’s best not to use it on gardens without thoroughly composting the wood first.
