How to Create Mulch with a Wood Chipper

The information on this page is not intended to be used solely as operating instructions for a woodchipper. You must always consult the product manual and seek help directly if you are unsure.

Mulch is definitely something you should have in your garden if you’re wanting your soil to stay healthy and it doesn’t take too long to create! It’s an affordable way to add value to your garden as you can use the organic matter in your own yard such as leaves, grass clippings, wood and branches. 

To create wood mulch, all you’ll need is a wood chipper. While you can use a lawnmower to make soft mulch out of leaves, using bark and wood mulch is both good for plants and better for long term use than leaves due to its slow decomposition time. You can also make a mulch combination which serves almost as a hybrid of both mulched leaves and wood chippings to make an extremely effective mulch. If you’re in need of a wood chipper, you’re in luck. Hirepool have wood chippers available for hire so that you can make wood mulch to help your garden thrive. We have two different wood chippers available for hire, one being a 75mm chipper which is fantastic for cutting smaller branches up to 75mm diameter and a 125mm chipper which is better suited for medium-sized branches above 75mm size but no larger than 125mm size. 

Steps for using a chipper 

You can use the wood and twigs you’ve got to turn it into mulch which can then be added to your garden to make it as healthy as possible. While using a wood chipper isn’t the most difficult task, it’s important to know the proper way to do it in order to get the best results. This quick user guide should help get you on your way to using a wood chipper safely. 

Step 1: Preparing to start the chipper 

The first thing you should do is find a spot somewhere outside where there is level ground for your chipper to sit on so that the machine doesn’t tilt or fall over while in use as this could be very dangerous. 

Safety is also extremely important when using a wood chipper and you should equip yourself with all of the necessary safety equipment. This includes:

• eye protection like goggles to prevent small pieces of debris flying into your eyes, 
• ear protection like ear muffs to drown out the loud noise that the chipper makes
• gloves to protect your hands. 
• appropriate hard or steel-toed shoes 

Wearing tight-fitting clothing can also be a good idea so that no loose pieces of clothing gets caught in the chipper. 

Before starting your petrol wood chipper, be sure to read the operator manual to make sure you understand how to operate the model you have hired. Typically to operate a petrol wood chipper, you’ll need to disengage the engine clutch, turn on the fuel and engage the choke for a cold start. From there, you should set the throttle lever to half and start pulling the starter cord firmly. Disengage the choke once the engine starts, and move the throttle lever to high and you’re good to go!

Step 2: Feed your wood into the chipper

One important piece of safety advice that you should always keep in mind - never feed anything through the machine that is larger than the recommended size. If you do, the chipper could spit the material back at you causing injury. For this exact reason, you should always stand to the side of the chipper at a safe angle, rather than directly in front, in case the chipper launches any material at you. 

Start by feeding your branches, bark and other pieces of wood into the chipper, one at a time with the blunt end going in first. The chipper should process your wood without hesitation, and forcing any material through is not recommended. If something doesn't go through it is best to be reversed or taken out and cut down to size for a better fit. You must never put your hands or arms anywhere near the mouth of the chipper.

Step 3: Mixing wood mulch with soft mulch 

A combination of wood mulch and soft mulch made from leaves and other garden debris is a great option for ensuring your garden is covered.  

Rather than putting leaves and branches through the chipper separately, you could put a mixture of them in together. The green leaves will help add moisture to the dry wood and twigs so that it’s not too dry for the chipper and vice versa. Alternatively, use your wood chipper for branches and wood, then mix your lawn clipping and other organic material raked up from around your garden in well with your wood mulch using a shovel or rake.  

From there, your mulch is done and ready to be added to your garden!

Ready to make mulch for the garden? Hire a wood chipper

Improve soil quality in your garden with homemade mulch using a wood chipper from Hirepool. Head over to our landscaping equipment section to hire equipment easily online, or call into your local Hirepool branch to chat to the team about your next landscaping project.