Pine straw mulch, the dried byproduct of fallen pine needles, is a popular mulch because it is lightweight yet remains stable and cohesive. Mulch is an indispensable part of landscaping and gardening.

Mulch has many benefits in the garden, like retaining soil moisture, insulating roots, and deterring weeds. Spreading a layer of mulch also makes your landscape look tidier. But there are so many ...

I love discovering new, useful things for the garden. My most recent find is pine straw mulch. For years, I’ve used white pine needles (Pinus strobus) to bed down my strawberry patch for the winter.

In some areas of the country, the choice between mulching with pine needles and wood mulch is a tough one. Since the 1980s, pine straw has been the favorite mulch in the South. It is inexpensive, ...

Can we take the pine needles under our pine tree to mulch our shrubs? We tried to grow grass under the pine tree, but now we’re trying to establish ground cover there. Pine needles make an attractive, ...

Over the years, I’ve had many questions from readers about using pine straw as a mulch in the vegetable garden. Is it a good idea? Let’s cover some of the basics. Mulching is a long-established ...

Right under our collective noses - and probably in your very own yard - is a great gardening tool that we have typically shunned. Pine straw. Raked up often to be disposed of, this all-natural, ...

Answer: The best time to move these plants is late in their dormant season. If you were to move them directly to their new location, January would be a good time for you. In other parts of the state, ...

At this time of year, when pine trees are shedding their old needles, my neighbors Mark and Olga are happy to have me rake up the needles that fall from their trees onto the street and their driveway, ...

A. Does pine straw make a good mulch to use with tomato plants in a raised bed? — R. Jeffers, Virginia Beach Q. Like any mulch, pine straw has pros and cons. Among the pros: It’s lightweight and ...