Can You Use Pine Needles In Cob?

Cob is a type of earth building technique that uses a mixture of earth and a fibrous organic material (typically straw, but in this case pine needles) that adds tensile strength.

What can I do with pine needles?

8 Brilliant Uses for Fallen Pine Needles

1. CREATE FIRE STARTERS. Bundle a handful of dry needles with thread to use along with kindling wood and newspaper.
2. USE AS MULCH.
3. MAKE A DISINFECTANT.
4. FLAVOR VINEGAR.
5. BREW A FOOTBATH.
6. COOK WITH THEM.
7. FRESHEN UP A ROOM.
8. FILL OUTDOOR PILLOWS.

What is the mixture for cob?

Cob is a mixture of clay, sand, straw, and water. Clay is the binder; sand gives the mixture strength; straw provides tensile strength (think “rebar”); and water helps activate the clay to hold the mixture together while building.

How do you make a good cob?

Mixing Cob: Step By Step
Pour off the water from 3 buckets of clay, and dump the clay into the sand pile. Remove your shoes, and get stompin’. Every minute or so, use the edge of the tarp to pull and roll the material to more quickly incorporate the sand and clay. Add water if necessary.

How long does it take for pine needles to degrade?

How long pine needles take to decompose depends on whether they are fresh or dry. Fresh pine needles have a thick waxy coating that makes it even harder for the bacteria to penetrate and reach the organic materials inside the needles. Composting fresh pine needles could take from 5 to 6 weeks.

Do pine needles have any value?

Nutritional Value
Pine needles are high in vitamin C; a tea made with the needles of the Pine tree has been used to stave off scurvy when no other sources of vitamin C were readily available. In a tincture or tea, Pine needles can help alleviate congestion and other respiratory problems.

What kind of sand do you use for cob?

I’ve kinda answered my own questions, but am I right. Hi Chris, It is a common practice to use sharp sand for making cob. “Sharp” meaning sand that has jagged edges rather than smooth (like beach sand) which is rounded.

What keeps cob from washing away?

Why doesn’t it wash away in the rain? Cob is very resistant to weathering. Because of its porous nature, it withstands long periods of rain without weakening. However, too much exposure is best avoided by the “boots and cap” strategy: wide roof eaves to protect the walls and an impervious foundation.

How long does it take for cob to dry?

It can take months to years for your cob to dry out fully. The bulk of the moisture will dry out in the first year, but it will not fully cure for 1-2 years beyond that. Once you’ve built your cob house and added your roof, allow it to breathe for several months before moving in.

Do you need sand for cob?

There are some rare areas where you will find soil that naturally contains the right amount of aggregate-to-clay ratio to make cob, but this is not usually the case. One of the main guidelines for choosing sand for your cob mixture is to use a rough and coarse sand that has many different particle sizes included in it.

How thick should cob walls be?

How thick should cob walls be? The thinner that cob walls are the less load bearing capacity and thermal mass that they will have. I recommend the width of cob walls be between 18 to 24 inches as a standard. This gives plenty of load bearing capacity for a one story building and plenty of thermal mass.

Do cobs need rugs?

Many horses, especially breeds such as the native pony and cob types, can adapt well to winter weather and easily cope without a rug when they have adequate forage and access to shelter.

Can you mix cement with cob?

Cement mortar mixerswill mix cob if you can handle the fumes and noise. As with manual mixing, the clayey soil and sand is mixed first, then the straw added. The cob has to be mixed wetter than with other types of mixing to allow the cement mixer to turn without too much stress.

What saddle is best for a cob?

Kent & Masters Cob GP| MGX
Designed specifically for Cob types, this low profile saddle has a flat tree shape and straighter-cut slim line panels to minimise bulk between horse and rider. Adjustable girthing options enable optimum saddle stability to be achieved.

What is the fastest way to decay pine needles?

This is because they speed up the process, and chopped pine needles compost faster than fresh ones. Just make a mound of pine needles and run over them with a lawnmower several times to chop them. The smaller they are, the faster they will decompose.

What happens if you don’t rake pine needles?

While leaves that have fallen from trees can be easily raked up, blown away, or crushed underfoot, pine needles lie in ever-growing mats on the ground and are more difficult to remove. If left in place they choke the life from grass or flowers planted beneath a tree.

Do worms like pine needles?

Earthworms love to eat. They eat any available organic matter in the soil. Anything from leaves, grass clippings, paper, or old produce is on the proverbial table. I find in general that soil that is mulched regularly with bark, pine needles, hay, straw, leaves, clippings, or compost tends to have a lot of earthworms.

What does boiling pine needles do?

It can be used as an expectorant for coughs and to help relieve chest congestion; it is also good for sore throats. It brings you clarity and mental clearness. It can help with depression, obesity, allergies and high blood pressure. Pine needles contain antioxidants.

When can I harvest pine needles?

Pine straw can be harvested anytime during the trees’ shedding season, from August to January. But the harvest could be timed to reduce adverse impact on the growing trees, according to Blanche.

What pine trees are worth money?

The Value of Pine Trees
Maple, oak and cherry trees garner higher prices, while pine trees are generally on the less valuable end of the spectrum. But the specific type of pine matters too. A white pine tree may be worth three times as much as a loblolly pine of the same size.

How do you seal cob?

A: Linseed oil and lime plaster are both sometimes used to seal cob against weather.