Eden
Thanks for posting it . I enjoyed watching it. I intend to watch the 2nd half soon.

I have to say ditto, I'm liking it but will watch in 3 or 4 installments :)

I attempted to post this and it gave me a message that I could not post it. I does make a lot of sense!

I will do this in my yard and garden to reduce amount of grass i need to mow and water.

OK, I just listened to the 2nd half. I agree with the idea. I am going to start with a first truck load of wood chips next spring. I am getting some (many) ideas. I wish I could fast forward to spring.

Several years ago, I started planning on doing something similar.  I noticed a significant difference between the soil around my trees (which is mulched) vs. that which is uncovered.  I started doing calculations.  One acre of land at 4" deep only requires ~500 cubic yards of wood chips.   Good thing there is I am only working on 3 acres.

We use straw.  You can often buy water damaged bales at a discount.  We like it better than wood chips because it breaks down into compost faster.  Also...with wood chips...you don't always know what you're getting.  (Not all wood chips are the same).   Here in the desert, we've  cut our water usage by more than half by mulching heavily with straw.

When we lived in the mountains of northern California, we got a load of wood chips that apparantly had a mildly caustic sap.  No big deal, except that as the chips dried out, they emitted a vapor that hurt our eyes and gave us headaches and sore throats.   I ended up piling it up and throwing dirt on top of it.  (It composted real well). 

So if you do use wood chips...be forewarned. 

LoL James. You are so lucky that you have that mach land. So 16 yards per truck that is only 94 truck of mulch for your small project.

Just got done watching all  1:43:07  of "Back To Eden".  What a remarkable video.  It was not only a revelation about a workable type of sustainable gardening, but was somehow a spiritually uplifting experience.  Thank you so much for sharing.    Best wishes,   Forever Figs

Interesting video!  I found it a little one sided from someone who lives in a very "green" place and noticed he commented on the barren lands that he flies over, insinuating that the barenness is man's fault.  I don't agree there.  Some of those places are not inhabited by anyone, nor have they been for hundreds of years.  It has valuable lessons though in mulching and pruning.  I learned a lot.  The mulch would help our container plants, but they definitely need water!  I guess you need to adapt these lessons to your own climate and needs.

Suzi

It certainly helps to live in an area that gets a lot of rainfall.   Having said that...mulching heavily with organic material does save water and does add nutrients to the soil as it breaks down.  This is true no matter where you live.

I was growing an apple seedling for 1 1/2 years and it looked stunted and sickly, so in the last half of this growing season I mulched it with pine bark chips and it doubled in size and looked really healthy.
 I watered it less too.

Thanks for the video, I enjoyed every minute of it.

In my area it is very beneficial to use lots and lots of mulch. It saves water and keeps the weeds down, earthworms love it, etc.

Wood chips are good, but I prefer the free ground green stuff from the dump - it decomposes and enriches the soil faster, though it doesn't last as long. Tree trimmers will give their wood chips away for free - it saves them a dump run. They can be found in the yellow pages. Our city gives their mulch away for free also. Locally, you can pick it up in your own vehicle at the dump, or call for a large dump truck full with only a charge for the delivery itself.