bark chipping

I have never heard of the necessity of leaving them to stand. Some people 'compost' them but that is just to colour them down and possibly prevent the de-nitrification that can occur with wood-chips. An alternative take is that fresh woodchip of deciduous plants might encourage pathogenic funghi, but I personally don't know any research on that.

I've talked about bark a fair bit on this BB - I think it pays to use only pure conifer (and preferably Pine) bark, or if it's locally produced then only chippings from healthy trees to prevent spread of disease. There's no doubt that mulches are generally a good thing, organic matter and most especially long term organic matter added to the soil almost always pays dividends. My point about 2" thick is that I have found this to be about right.

Some people reckon 4" is a minimum - fine if you have no delicate plants underneath. Their take is that the stuff rots down pretty fast, so 4" as applied is 2.5" by the end of the year, so the weeds could be coming through in 18 months time, and it costs to go back and bulk it up too frequently.

Be aware however that repeatedly adding this much material will inevitably have long term effects on the soil that may not be 100% beneficial.

 

I've been using chippings in a wood land garden area - 2-3 inches thick - and it really works as weed suppressant! Just forked in last years, we are on heavy clay, and the chippings help loosen it up. I get trailer loads for free from the guys who do our hedges. They are always keen to dispose of it. In fact they call me and ask if I want it. Answer is always yes. The next tree guys you see with a shredder, chat 'em up.