Highlights

  • Pine straw is a popular landscape ground cover throughout the South.
  • Pine straw has superior properties over other organic mulches.
  • All four native pine in East Texas make a first-rate mulch.
  • Pine straw is a renewable resource that may supplement forestland investments.
  • Pine straw is retailing for $5 to $10 per 25 to 50 pound bale to landscapers, nurseries and garden centers.
  • East Texas pine stands yield 80 to 120 bales per acre per year.
  • The initial cost of preparing a stand for pine straw harvesting cost approximately $200 per acre.
  • Landowners can lease their land for as much as $30 per acre for baling rights.
  • Fertilizer may be essential to replenish nutrient loss to pine straw harvesting.
  • Maintaining a basal area of about 90 square feet per acre is important in controlling understory vegetation as well as in maximizing straw yields.
  • Removal of straw from stands is preferably done every 2 years.

Advantages to the Forest Landowner

  • Production of pine straw will provide a source of income while trees are being grown for timber.
  • Production of pine straw might provide some tax relief.
  • The aesthetic appearance of the forest stand is improved by removing weeds and other understory vegetation.
  • Landowners can contract with a harvesting company which will harvest the pine straw and have very little time invested.

Disadvantages

  • Removal of pine straw may affect the nutrient balance and reduce the long-term soil productivity in addition to decreasing the growth of the trees.
  • Some wildlife species which normally reside in forest stands may be adversely affected by lack of cover and food supply.

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