Moss and fine conifer needles

Newbie here....I've been preparing my lawns for repairing the patches where moss has overtaken. I am surprised at how much moss i'm collecting!!! Roughly 20 bin bags worth and still counting. Also i've cut down about twenty mature conifers and have a substancial amount of fine conifer needles (around 10 bags of the fine stuff)

A couple of questions.

1) Does moss make a decent compost?

Also on a bare area of soil (it used to be part of the lawn before the conifer grew to big) I raked up the last remaining conifer needles and noticed the soil was warm and moist underneath.

2) Would it be beneficial to use the conifer needles to cover the area of lawn that i'm seeding/ repairing?

Thanks

 

Hi Rob

Welcome to the forum.

In large quantities, moss does not break down in average sized compost heaps.

You can get away with very small amounts of moss added, over a period of time, to a healthy heap but otherwise, forget it. Take it all to a local authority recycling centre where they'll mix it up with tons of other green waste and then pile it up with a mechanical digger.

I'd also do the same with the pine needles. They tend to make the soil acid, it is said, and they certainly take years to break down. More to the point, your lawn doesn't need them so why take the risk, now you've got them neatly bagged up?

You're going to need a very large trailer or a small lorry.....!

 

Thanks Flinty. My local authority only accept *reasonable* amounts of garden waste, they wouldn't accept my conifers and had to pay a small fortune to get them shifted!!! Oh well I'll see what they say, cheers