Did you ever try wood chips? We did them for four seasons before we decided it wasn’t a good idea for us. The wood seemed to be bringing in more bad bugs. Straw and hay have been a better idea. They’re much, much less difficult to use labor wise, and we don’t find the bad bug invasions as much. In fact, the grasses seem to encourage more spiders.
Wood chips are carbon and straw and hay are nitrogen. Both are excellent for layering on your garden. And you are totally correct, the hay/straw is less labor and that is a bonus.
Did you ever try wood chips? We did them for four seasons before we decided it wasn’t a good idea for us. The wood seemed to be bringing in more bad bugs. Straw and hay have been a better idea. They’re much, much less difficult to use labor wise, and we don’t find the bad bug invasions as much. In fact, the grasses seem to encourage more spiders.
Wood chips are carbon and straw and hay are nitrogen. Both are excellent for layering on your garden. And you are totally correct, the hay/straw is less labor and that is a bonus.