Spontaneously Combusting Mulch
May 6th, 2013 · 1 Comment · Posted in farming, garden
Who knew the azaleas were a fire hazard?
We thought starting a farm in Upstate New York our biggest concerns were going to be keeping the livestock fed and safe from predators. Then my wife walked out the front porch yesterday afternoon and noticed the pine bark mulch around the azalea bushes smoldering.
Huh?
She pushed the mulch around with her foot and WHOOSH! It bust into flames.
Now here’s something we never saw mentioned in our homeowner’s insurance policy: danger of fire from the landscaping. Apparently the sun, beating down all day from a cloudless sky, heated the pine bark to a point where it spontaneously combusted. I suppose it didn’t help that underneath the mulch the previous owner had placed black landscaping cloth.
I can assure you, neither pine bark mulch nor azaleas are our idea of landscaping. They came with the house. The solution? We scooped up all the mulch and moved it to some blueberry bushes planted a safe distance away from the house in the other direction.
But do note the brand new wheelbarrow in the photo. Back in D.C., I never had any need of a wheelbarrow. I used plastic buckets to haul things around. Things are a bit different when you own 30 acres. I suppose I’ll soon be shopping for a used tractor as well.
New wheelbarrow to dispose of mulch
And here you see daughter in the act of solving the fire-prone mulch problem. She eagerly volunteered for this job. I think maybe she’s going to like this farm life.
There will be chores to do….
The chores never stop, in fact… 🙂