Somewhat OT, during the multiple rounds of ice and snow here in PA, the arborvitae hedge along the back of my house that is older than me was quite obliterated. 

 
 
My shed in the corner is about 7' tall, for reference. I had already removed over half the broken pieces when this photo was taken.

I'm not too heartbroken, since now there's more sunlight to the assorted fruits in that part of the yard.

But the question of the day...any thoughts on what to do with all the broken pieces? There are at least ten 15' long pieces that I've pulled out. Seems a shame to throw/haul it away, but I don't know what to do with it all. Maybe save the trunks and use them for garden edging?

Arb is a soft wood, it rots very quickly. You could use it for 1 season, but it will attract ants and other unwanted guests. It's really not good for very much at all. Sorry

Can you chip it and put it in the compost pile?

Suzi

Kelby,
You can do hugelkultur with it. It will supply your plants with a lot of nutrient for a long time.

Norhayati

Precisely what I was going to recommend, Norhayti. Hugelkultur is what I turned to when we recently had downed limbs and debris. I dug a pit and buried the stuff. It is now a bed where I'll plant potatoes and such. It'll retain moisture and give nutrients as the debris rots. This will work for me for years, with little or no need for irrigation. Think of it like a reservoir for your plants. That tree of yours accumulated nutrients over the course of its life. It would be a shame to remove those from your property when they can be better utilized by stuff you want to grow.

I had thought about doing a hugelkultur, but wasn't sure if arbs would be any good since some conifers tend to rot too slowly.

And I wish I had a chipper, but fate smiled on me and granted me 80 free bags of mulch, so it's not a big deal.

I googled that hugelkultur word because I was clueless, and it does say conifers aren't good.  Cypress, same.  I suppose Junipers also.

So how about you dig a pit, start a fire and cook some crab or a pig and invite the neighbors?  I'd be there, but you are a little far from So CA!

Suzi

I burry every large piece of wood very deep under where I plant my fruit trees and garden beds.

I say go for the hugelkultur. Since fig roots tend toward the surface, you don't have to bury the logs deeply, i.e. not much extra work involved using hugelkultur for figs.

Over the past year I have used it with everything I planted. The good thing is I live in a semi-rural area and there are plenty of half-rotted logs to be hauled from wooded areas near-by. Since I only started last season, I don't know how much difference it will make, but I have high hopes.

Mushrooms?

Per permaculture sources I have read, conifers are supposed to rot too quickly to see long-term benefits. OK, so your hugelkultur won't last 20 years. No problem. Your soil will still be better than it was before the burial of debris, regardless of species, as long as it is not walnut or redwood or some other species that contains toxins and/or inhibitors.

As for mine, I threw everything, including our Christmas tree, into the hole. Most of the limbs and leaves were oak, so it's a mix. Everything rots together just fine in the forest. And plants seem to grow well over the materials, whether conifer or deciduous. The soil in woodlands is more fungal than bacterial. This is better for tree growth than vegetables (most farmland is primarily bacterially dominated). Since I did not bury a giant specimen and mixed it up, I'll plant without concern that the soil is unbalanced. I'll throw some compost tea onto the bed later on; and it will all eventually adjust itself.

While the arborvitae is not as ideal as say a downed maple for this application, it has to be better than nothing and certainly more so than a bag of chemicals.

Hi,
I read that tuya wood is not good . Even the branches shouldn't be thrown to rot with the other vegies .
That wood will release acidic components to your dirt - turning it a bit more acidic - Acid dirt tends to preserve all the vegies waste . So your wastes won't rot ...

Barbecue is the best option. You could then use the ashes as fertilizer.
With so much wood, you can barbecue for some years.
If you don't want to and you have neighbors heating their houses with wood, sell/give it to them - if your goal is to get rid of the wood .

Thanks all!

I think I'm going to mow over/chip up the smaller branches and needles and put it around my dogwood trees and other acid loving plants.  Big stuff (there's lots of it) will be used all over for everything. Some of the trunks/branches might be good for garden stakes in the vegetable garden (am I allowed to admit I grow other crops here?), they are a nice size.

I did some more research into uses for the wood, apparently it was traditionally used for log cabins and 'rustic fencing', as it apparently is rot and insect resistant despite being soft wooded. Maybe I'll built some log cabins to protect the figs this winter, wouldn't that be a sight.