I came across this product when searching for sources of straw on the net:
It was devised by a Leeds University academic, Geoff Whiteley, who spun out a company about 10 years ago from the Uni and appears to involve firstly a way of stabilsing straw-based mulch for storage (up to 2 years apparently) but also, interestingly, apparently it confers resistance to slug attack of plants grown with a top dressing of Strulch.
The principle appears to be the same as Charles’ methods, in terms of inhibition of weed growth, although the treatments involve using iron and/or aluminium coatings to prevent fungal decay and therefore would not appear to be organic:
is a link to the patent description (the patent will still be active until late 2017).
I guess a few issues arise:
1. Does anyone know if the coatings of the treated mulch leach into the topsoil and, if so, what is the effect of that on soil life?
2. Would the product be useful as a short-term top dressing just until plants have established to sufficient size to resist slug/snail attack?
3. Does the product ever break down over longer periods of time and, if so, are the effects on soil ecology known??
At the moment, this is just a thought, as the product is pretty expensive in small scale (prices of £20 for 100 litres if you buy one bag vs £8.50 per bag for 25 if you buy direct – apparently 1 bag should cover 4.5 square metres so 50 bags is enough for a full 10 rod allotment).
Any thoughts appreciated…….