Wood chip mulch

We strive to be efficient and economical in all that we do. One such tactic that satisfies both of those principles is our use of wood chip mulch in the flower beds around the property.

This is our debris pile before it has been chipped.
We have created piles this big in each of the
last three years.

Several years ago, we undertook the task of trimming all of the trees on the property. We trimmed holes 1-9 in the winter of 2014-15, then holes 10-18 in the winter of 2015-16, then the entrance, soccer and tennis, and the front field near river road in the winter of 2016-17. This project generated a lot of debris. We stockpiled this debris in our back field and had our tree contractor chip all of the material on-site. We then used these wood chips as our own mulch for the flower beds all across Bretton Woods.

The bigger wood chips that are made are also beneficial because they don’t wash away as easily. Last week, we talked about adding stone to the flower beds to prevent washouts from heavy rain. The stone is strategically placed in areas that are prone to being ruined by flowing water. However, mulch can washout from a storm even in less likely areas, especially if that mulch is very light and finely textured. Nearly any type of mulch, or other material would wash away from the areas we have transitioned to stone, but the larger wood chips keep washouts from being more prevalent.

Here is the wood chip pile.

Lastly, the cost savings of using our own material is considerable as well. Purchased mulch is expensive. The mulch must be chipped several times to make it fine textured. Often times it must be dyed to give it a black or brown or even a red color. It must be shipped to the supplier and then delivered to the end user. All of these steps increase the price of the material. In very general terms, a 12 yard load of mulch costs about $350. The flower beds across the entire property would require about 15-25 loads of mulch, costing between $5250-8750. It does cost us some in labor and contract help to get our wood chips, but for the purchased mulch this would be a yearly cost because the purchased mulch fades, washes out easier, and needs to be replaced sooner. Our large wood chips are not dyed so the only color change is from natural to more natural, it washes out less, and it can go two years before replacement in most circumstances.

While there was a good deal of labor required to trim the trees, haul the debris to be stockpiled, and then hauling the mulch back to the flower beds, we still saved in the long run. We kept a closed loop of resources here at Bretton Woods and used money to purchase other materials rather than mulch.

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

Please do not walk around the lip of a bunker. This can cause the sod edge to slide into the sand. Instead walk through the bunker and rake your disturbance on your way back out.

See you on the course!

Joe

jvillegas@bwrc.org