Penn Mulch anyone?

[lawnboy11]

Any comments on Penn Mulch? I'll be trying it this year and would like to hear some comments or suggestions. Thanks in advance...

[kutnkru]

The product is fine for smaller areas. If you can sell the customer on using it for a large area you would be better off using hydroseed.

Take a look at Lesco too. They have one that looks more like the green color of grass than the turquoise of the ocean.

Good Luck this season!
Kris

[Earthscapes]

Awesome stuff for smaller areas. It's a little pricey ($11.00 a bag) for large areas. Water it well and it will do wonders.

[gr8 1]

I agree, we use it for small areas, and hydroseed regular seedings. You can use it for large "flat" areas if you irragate or get a nice gentle rain...yeah right! But if the first water is a downpour it will wash easily.

[lawnboy82]

so you would use this product if you were hydroseeding? but i thought that for 11 or 12 dollars you only get 1m/sq ft. of coverage. now for larger areas if you are not hydroseeding would you suggest the salt hay? cause we know that the regular stuff is no good.

[LScom Addict]

I have avoided this product because of the potential for the washout. I would also think that seeing as how it is made from shredded paper, wood fibers and clined(sp) clay that you could compose your own mixture.

[lawnboy11]

Thanks for the replies. I have always used peat moss. That costs around 6-7$/ 4 cubic feet. My supplier said it covers a lot more area than a bale of peat so I think the cost is about the same. I will only be using it to spot seed on small properties. And, no offense, but make my own? Time is money, I ain't gots the time for that!!! Nor a pelletizing machine so that I can spread it with a spreader. And it has starter fertilizer, I'm looking for C-O-N-V-E-N-I-E-N-C-E!!! I like being solo so I must replace the need for employees with faster machines and faster methods.

[Edited by lawnboy11 on 03-14-2001 at 11:50 PM]

[Prasino]

Penn Mulch is good and is cheaper then peat moss. Never had any failures using it.

[GroundKprs]

Penn Mulch will wash easily in a downpour. Only tried it once, and Penn Mulch areas washed out in a heavy rain, and straw areas were just fine. All these were tilled and seeded strips along paved areas. It did not matter if the water was running toward the pavement or away from it. All PM applied on this site was gone from where it was placed. And it had been in place for a week, with twice a day irrigations. Grass was starting to germinate the day of the downpour. Had to redo the PM areas, the straw mulched areas needed no attention, even where water flowed 2" deep across straw.

[BRL]

lawnboy11,
There is very little fertilizer in Penn Mulch, read the label. You should still put down the fert. seperate.
Groundkprs,
I had the same problem as you described, where the grass had just started germinating. Since it had started I didn't redo anything & the grass came in fine. Just wondering what prompted you to redo that area if the grass had already germinated. Maybe you saw a lot of evidence of seed washed away also? Maybe the seed wasn't raked into the soil in that case, so it washed away with the PM? Just curious for the future. I've had good luck with PM for the most part.

[GroundKprs]

Hey BRL, this was a good old Indiana DOWNPOUR. Grass had just started to germinate - saw a few 1/2" blades, and rain hit as I went back to truck. Next day in the PM areas there were a few 1" blades, bottom half was all white. LOL. Washed away 1/2" of soil, and took all ungerminated seed and anything rooted less than 1/2" with it. All PM had washed onto pavement or into adjacent turf. And this was after a week of good irrigation.

As I drove away water was running down gutter about 3 ft onto lawn, at least 2" deep. Was sure the whole thing was gone. But next day, just a little of the straw had moved, and all straw mulch along gutter was fine. I would have expected it to float away. So no more PM for me, straw may not look so great, but it is the most functional for me.

[Edited by GroundKprs on 03-15-2001 at 01:09 PM]

[lawnboy11]

Hey BRL and Grdskprs,
Thanks for the replies.
BRL-I did read the label and I always do fertilze anyway, it's just a little extra kick I guess, but I was saying that to make Penn Mulch myself as LS addict suggested I would also have to add fertilizer.
GRNDS-thanks for the advice, I will only be testing this as opposed to peat moss for use in spot seeding on small properties and straw is not an option really, but if I do a large project I will remember what you said and use straw. I always upside down rake the seed into the soil, the mulch helps keep it moist and protected.