Hi Rimmer, I do fertilize my beds, however the soil test stated that none was needed. I'm leaning toward the roots having the problem of not penetrating the soil in the bed. I have used the woodchip mulch for years, it binds up the nitrogen in the first few years but when it decomposes further it then releases the nitrogen. If you use it constantly you have that problem in the first couple of years and then it has a bind and release cycle as it decays, so there is enough nitrogen. In my friends garden the A. sikokanum grow very well and self sow all around even in the woodland, very special sight to see. We will see how my barerooted ones do this year. Weather predictions are for having another dry summer, ugh! Last summer I spent a good deal of time making sure the numerous newly planted plants all got suffecient water, supplementing the rain is one thing but having to apply all the water is exhausting. Fortunately I have a very good well, because at the present time the little stream, the mountain people call a little,stream a 'branch', is bone dry. I live at the very beginning of a river called 'The French Broad River', there is a North Fork, South Fork and Middle Fork, all feeding the French Broad. About 50 miles down steam it becomes a river, quite wide but some what shallow. It eventually flows into the Tennessee River and then eventually the Mississippi. I am only about 10 miles from the Contennintal Divide, the place where water either goes to the Atlantic or to the Gulf of Mexico, all our water goes to the Gulf. On Sat, Mar 25, 2017 at 6:52 AM, Rimmer deVries <rdevries@comcast.net> wrote: > Add balanced granular fertilizer to the wood chips to make up for the > nitrogen depletion of the decaying wood chips > > Rimmer > > > Peter Taggart wrote: > > > > Wood chips also take some time to decay, and until they do, are > detrimental > > to the soil for many > > _______________________________________________ > pbs mailing list > pbs@lists.ibiblio.org > http://pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php > http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/ >