Are Pecan Shells Good For Mulch?

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Pecans are a delicious ingredient, but you’ll be left with plenty of shells when you’ve finished cooking. Throwing them away would be wasteful. So, many people opt to recycle them in the garden. But are pecan shells a good form of mulch?

Pecan shells can be used for mulch. As these shells break down, they will lower soil acidity, making them an excellent choice for plants that thrive in an acidic environment. Professional landscapers prefer pecan shells for their uniform shape and color, creating attractive gardens.

Pecan shells are a terrific gardening resource. When used right, this mulch will improve your garden’s aesthetic appeal while giving your plants the resources they need to thrive. Keep reading to learn more about how you can use pecan mulch in the garden.

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Should You Use Pecan Shells For Mulch?

Pecan shells are an excellent type of mulch. They contain plenty of nutrients to support plant growth. These shells are light so they will last for a long time. They also lower the soil’s pH, making them the ideal choice for acid-loving plants.

There are a few reasons why so many gardeners opt to use pecan shells in their mulch. First, they will offer some valuable nutrients, helping the plants to thrive. In particular, they are known for having a high amount of fiber.

In particular, it contains a lot of cellulose. This is a key source of organic materials in the soil. As bacteria work to break down the fiber, they will be adding key elements like nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium into the soil.

It’s also important to consider the texture of the shell. They aren’t liable to compact the soil, so water can still flow to plant roots. Plus, the sharp shell edges will cut insects, like snails, who try to get to your plants.

Because they are organic mulch, pecan shells will eventually break down. But they will decompose slowly. This saves time, as you need to replace it less frequently. Plus, they are lightweight, which makes them easy to transport around your garden.

This type of mulch will lower the pH of the soil slightly. This makes it the perfect choice for acid-loving plants.

Many gardeners enjoy the aesthetics of these shells. The rich brown color looks great in the garden, especially compared to traditional wood mulch. This is why pecan mulch is the choice of a lot of professional landscaping companies. There are a few other reasons why people opt to use pecan mulch; these include:

Regulating soil temperature. Pecan mulch will help to control soil temperatures, protecting plants against a harsh winter.

Conserving water. When using mulch, you’ll be able to slow the evaporation rate of the soil. This reduces the amount of water you will need to use.
Stopping weeds. The layer of mulch will block out the sunlight, so weeds won’t be able to germinate.

How to Prepare Pecan Shell Mulch

For a small garden, it will be possible to cut pecan shells. This gets rid of any sharp edges and speeds up the decomposition rate. For larger gardens, cutting up each shell will be inconvenient, so whole shells are used instead. However, this approach means that the sharp shell edge will remain.

There are a few ways to get your pecan shells ready for mulching. But first, you will need to source the shells. If you love to cook with pecans, you might be able to save the shells from your kitchen. This should be enough for a few pot plants. If you have a large garden, though, you will need a lot of pecans.

You might be able to find pecan mulch in your local hardware store. If you can’t, you can try contacting a local pecan farmer. Another option is to mix pecans with other materials to bulk up the mulch. Some of the most popular options are:

Peanuts

Corncobs, as long as they are ground first
Bark
Straw/dried grass

There are a few ways you can prepare pecan shells. First, you might want to put them into a blender and grind them down. This will remove the sharp edges and help speed up the decomposition rate. However, this is usually only used for pot plants because of the amount of work involved in blending all the pecans up.

If you don’t have time to do this, you can use the pecan shells whole. You just need to make sure to separate the shell and remove the nut first. You just need to be aware that they will have sharp edges.

The good news is that the sharp edges won’t have any impact on mulching properties. The bad news is that it can make it a little more challenging to work with. Because of this, it’s recommended that you use gloves to spread the shells.

How to Use Pecan Shells As Mulch

In most cases, gardeners will need to use between two to three inches of pecan seed mulch. However, pot plants are more insulated from environmental changes, so they only need one inch of mulch. It’s recommended that gardeners spread mulch evenly rather than piling it around the base of the plant.

How you use pecan shells depends on the size of the space you want to mulch. If it’s for a pot plant, you will be able to chop up the pecan shells. You can then sprinkle it around the plants. Usually, you’ll only need the layer to be one inch thick. This will be enough to lock in moisture and heat.

However, if you want to use pecans in the garden, cutting them up will often be impractical. In this case, using them whole is the best option. You’ll need to have a slightly thicker layer of shells. Usually, you’ll need to lay them between two to three inches thick.

It’s best to leave a little space between the pecan shells and the base of the plants. If you don’t, there is a risk that you will be trapping moisture. In rare cases, this has led to disease. Saplings are more vulnerable to this than more established plants.

Another option is to lay a thick layer of pecan mulch down. This stops weeds from growing in your garden, as this YouTube video demonstrates:

Can You Use Other Parts Of The Pecan As Mulch?

While we’ve focused on the shells, there are a few other parts of the pecan tree. Here is what you should do with each of these elements:

Nuts. This is a very popular ingredient that goes with a lot of recipes. Because of this, you don’t want to throw it away to be mulched. Even if the nut is a little old, toasting them in the oven should bring back their flavor so you can cook with them. If you don’t want to use them, you can put them into the compost heap to break down and release nutrients into the soil.
Leaves. You will likely have plenty of pecan leaves on your lawn if you have a pecan tree. However, these are allelopathic, which means they contain a toxin that can kill plants. The good news is that the toxin is fairly mild. Because of this, the leaves will make fairly good mulch.
Branches. You can break up smaller branches with a lawnmower. For bigger pieces, you will need to use a woodchipper. If you do this, they will be fairly good mulch. You can also add sticks to the compost heap, though they will take a long time to break down.

Final Thoughts

There are many reasons why people prefer to use pecan shell mulch, especially if they have acid-loving plants. Not does it take a long time to break down and provide valuable nutrients, but it also offers an attractive dark brown color to improve a garden’s aesthetic appeal. Even better, this type of mulch is easy for beginners to work with.

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