Pine Needle Carpet

I love the pine needle carpet under our pine trees.  At this time of year, lots of old needles fall off and cover the ground under the trees... and the surrounding area.  It is beautiful and it reminds me of hiking trips in the mountains where we walked through the trails under the pines. The pine needles formed a softer path for walking and created a quieter hush which made the walk in the forest even more pleasant.

With so many needles on the ground, it would seem that the trees would be bare.... but they are still plenty full of pine needles and the trees really don't look a lot different than they did.

The pine cones are falling also, and there are a lot of them.

They add to the messy look and make walking out there a little harder, but I do like the pine cones also. It is just part of this season and it won't last forever.

The little drive out there is all covered.

One reason I let the guys blow them over to under the trees instead of leaving them out in the gardens is that pine needles are acidic and they are not great for our regular garden plants and could hinder their growth. Our blueberries; however, LOVE them, so we collect the pine needles and mulch the blueberry bushes heavily. This helps to conserve the moisture for the bushes (blueberry bushes like a lot of water). It also helps to keep the ph balanced.

Another reason we don't leave them all over that part of the yard is that when the snow comes... and snowmen are made (or snow forts), the needles stick to everything and the snowmen or forts don't look as nice. :) 

We have had to paint the deck, so the deck furniture was put out under the pines. I love saying that... "Out under the pines!" :)  It really is  a special section of our little property.

The deck painting job had many delays due to weather and more, so the furniture stayed out there... and the needles covered that also. The painting job is finally done, so it is time to put stuff back into place, but the needles on the table looked nice for a picture. :)

With all of the leaves and pine cones, it starts to look a bit messy and I don't like that part, but I do love the pine needle carpet.  We will be picking up all of the pine cones.

I have had to convince my guys to leave the pine needles... we do gather them under the trees more, so they aren't all over the place, but I love having that pine needle carpet out there. The grass doesn't grow under the trees anyway, and without the pine needles, it would just be mud at times and I do NOT like mud. :)

We would love to live in the country, but for now we live on our little 1/4 acre in the city, where God has blessed us with many trees, many growing plants and bushes and more.... and having the pines sure makes it nicer. At times, we can sit on the deck and listen to the wind in the pines and recall trips in the country and it makes living in the city much more pleasant. :)

Today, we are especially enjoying the pines... the cold polar vortex weather is moving in tonight or tomorrow, but today is BEAUTIFUL. I have already been out under the pines this morning and the wind is blowing, but it is not a cold wind. It is so nice out. The guys are doing a big window job in the kitchen, and have torn out 2 big windows, so the house is just open on that side, which faces the pines. With that large opening, we are enjoying the pines even more.... and they are hurrying to build up the window area and get the wall closed up before the cold weather gets here again.  By the way, that big project will probably be a future post. :)

Thank you for visiting... I hope you are enjoying your day and serving the Lord. 

Shared on:

Green Thumb Thursday
The Art Of Homemaking
Faith Filled Friday
Homemaking Link Up
Wise Woman
Wednesday Blog Hop
Hip Homeschool Hop
Tuesdays At Our Home
Mama Moments Mondays
Making Your Home Sing Monday
The Art of Homemaking
Homestead Barn Hop