So what’s the deal with pine straw? Hoarding, short supply, what is it?

fieldgrade

fieldgrade

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I happened to notice a couple of weeks ago that a place I buy “bulk” landscaping supplies for my DIY projects didn’t have one single bail under their big covered shelter for pine and wheat straw.

So I called today to see if they had any for a project I’m working on at one of the young ‘un’s houses.

Me on the phone: “Just checking to see if y’all have in pine straw in stock."
Them: long pause
Them: “Well, uh....., *I can tell they are looking away from the phone*. “How much did you need?"
Me: “I dunno. Maybe twelve bails?"
Them: “ Oh, well, you come right on over and and you can get twelve bails."

I get off the phone, look at the radar, rain’s coming in, so I called to say I’m not coming after all. She said they just got it in this morning, and expected it to all be gone by afternoon. Judging from their lack of inventory several weeks ago I don’t think this has to do with the gas hoarding crisis.

Edit: It didn’t occur to me that maybe the new home construction boom and run on ancillary supplies might be driving it.
 
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Just be thankful that there is no environmental tax on pine needles... yet. ​

​

Pine Tree Pollution​

forest
Neil Donahue

Neil Donahue

Pine trees are one of the biggest contributors to air pollution.


They give off gases that react with airborne chemicals — many of which are produced by human activity — creating tiny, invisible particles that muddy the air.
 
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Quarantine/work-from-home and stimulus checks have made home improvement projects skyrocket. Like a lot of things we have seen over the past year, demand is outpacing supply.
 
A bunch of us in my own neighborhood (not where my DIY project was going on today) pay a guy and his crew to spread pinestraw once or twice a year at our homes. He brings the best, freshest, long leaf pine straw out of the sandhills I’ve ever seen, and only charges maybe a buck to a buck fifty a bail to spread it, and a very fair price for the straw, and does a GREAT job, with pine straw so good I can’t find it anywhere to buy for myself like that.

Maybe I just need to call him for this project.
 
The ones that call it straw are the ones that are the problem/shortage. Somehow needles have become a landscaping necessity for our latest mass of immigrants.
 
fieldgrade said:
You are the second person I have ever heard call it that, in 65 years, and the other one wasn’t from around here.
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You talking about this stuff?

36272519-950D-4D3C-A5DC-62A4E9E40B76.jpeg

I’ve never called it anything other than pine needles. My mom buys them 4-5 dozen at a time, and I’ve never heard her call them anything but pine needles. (And neither of us have ever lived anywhere other than NC)

Weird.

Heck, they’re called pine needles on both the Lowe’s & HD apps.
 
The NC wholeseller I deal with said the shortage is from not enough workers. They are months behind and cant keep up.

Oh yeah, the freightliner truck that drops off the 53' trailers full. Know what the logo says on the truck doors?
NC long leaf Pine Needles...
 
This guy and his crews deliver the singularly best looking NC sandhills long-leaf-pine STRAW I have ever seen in my life.

See where it says pine needles on his truck? Neither do I.

9E159959-2799-48D7-AA96-1A0EE2D5CDA6.jpeg
 
fieldgrade said:
This guy and his crews deliver the singularly best looking NC sandhills long-leaf-pine STRAW I have ever seen in my life.

See where it says pine needles on his truck? Neither do I.

View attachment 333146
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He likely used Google translate to make the sign.
 
45 > 9
Ford > Chevy
whipped cream > meringue (blech)
straw > needles
 
Since were talking about pine straw(?)/needles, I’ll share a funny story...
When I first came to CLT, I walked outside of my apartment one day and saw tons of pine needles under a small tree. It was most certainly not a pine tree, so I stood there for a second very confused. I then noticed all trees down the sidewalk had the same pine needles. That was the first time I ever saw pine needles used as mulch/ground cover. Blew my mind haha.

But yes, they’re pine needles to me.
 
Pine leaves, perhaps? We have always called it pine straw down in the Green Swamp. We would go rake up a trailer load of pine straw across the road in a clean stand of pines to put on the ground to keep the dead hogs clean when we dragged them out of the vat of hot water to shave them before hanging them up to butcher them.
 
This whole needles versus straw sounds like a strawman argument to me. 😛
 
i have a big old tree that gives me plenty. i was thinking to use it for ground cover in the veggie patch i'm still trying to set up. not sure if the pineyness would be bad for growing though
 
DrScaryGuy said:
i have a big old tree that gives me plenty. i was thinking to use it for ground cover in the veggie patch i'm still trying to set up. not sure if the pineyness would be bad for growing though
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They are very acidic. I wouldn't put them around plants I want to keep.

We cleared them from an area and it took 3 years to get grass to grow
 
LeeMajors said:
They are very acidic. I wouldn't put them around plants I want to keep.

We cleared them from an area and it took 3 years to get grass to grow
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thanks. that's exactly what i was too lazy to google.
deep down i had a feeling that would be the answer, since NOTHING is growing under that tree...
 
LeeMajors said:
They are very acidic. I wouldn't put them around plants I want to keep.

We cleared them from an area and it took 3 years to get grass to grow
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The only place I bed the pine needles is around blueberries, it is a necessity where there is alkaline soil.
 
Pine needles, pine straw, too many city people thinks it makes their “castle” look better, they are flush with cash, so the shortage ensues.
 
MostWanted said:
Firemen call it "tinder" and you won't find it stacked up around their homes.
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CF73D809-D0B8-43E6-B2C2-22BDAB79B54B.jpeg

LOL....I haven’t put out any this year....yet...LOL.

She says, "Hey, babe
Take a walk on the wild side"
Said, "Hey, honey
Take a walk on the wild side"
 
fieldgrade said:
A bunch of us in my own neighborhood (not where my DIY project was going on today) pay a guy and his crew to spread pinestraw once or twice a year at our homes. He brings the best, freshest, long leaf pine straw out of the sandhills I’ve ever seen, and only charges maybe a buck to a buck fifty a bail to spread it, and a very fair price for the straw, and does a GREAT job, with pine straw so good I can’t find it anywhere to buy for myself like that.

Maybe I just need to call him for this project.
Click to expand...

$1-1.50’s a good deal.
 
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