I've found lots of pine "straw" in many a vehicle's ventilation duct - there must be a market for the stuff it seems to be a popular aftermarket addition.

Junk that fixing cars workshop idea engatwork - the money grows on trees where you live.

LOL - the best money grows on pecan trees around here:).

I'm fighting pretty much the same battle right now Jim. Some years ago I built a good sized shed onto the side of my old shop for the lawnmowers, bicycles, four wheeler and garden tools. The problem is that I built it right under two pines that have gotten huge.

For me LAST YEAR was the year it really dropped lots of needles and last year was a drought year. MAYBE they drop more needles when they are weather stressed. I have no idea if this is correct, but that seems to be the pattern I see.

In fact last night I was clearing the top of the shed. I put the front end loader bucket just under the edge of the shed roof and then rake and sweep the pine needles into the bucket. I also lay the bucket down and scoop them off the ground in that area. Takes some extra work with a rake to get 'em all up.

I spread them over the garden spot the best I can so I can till them in come the dead of Winter.

Very low pH. It's somewhere around 4. Acid loving plants love it. Blueberries, Azaleas. Mountain laurel. Non-acid loving plants wont thrive in soil rich in pine needles.

Also, pine leaf fascicles (heh) have a lot of terpenes and sequiterpenes which are highly resistant to decomposition, which is why they make good mulch.

My Grandma lived in the beautiful little town of San Saba, Texas. The Pecan industry, ranching and hunting is all the industry they have. In that community they have INDEED proven that money grows on trees.

My wife and I spent a few days there a couple of weeks ago. It appeared that every man, woman and child were out gathering pecans. The soil conditions are so great there, that in vacant lots there are no weeds, only Saint Augustine grass. I made friends with the man that is restoring my Grandma's modest old Victorian home. If I could buy it in a few years, my wife and I have even considered retiring there or at least share our time between there and our current place.

San Saba is Tommy Lee Jones home town. We drove by one of his polo fields outside town, San Saba High School, class of '64.

San Saba is frozen in time. There is very little money there, but the town is neat and clean, extremely low crime rate, LOTS of character. They call themselves; "The Pecan Capitol of the World." When I was a kid that was quite impressive. Since that time I've learned that most every state has a town that makes the same claim.

Thanks for the information Bot! What I got off of the roof was pretty well composted. Would it still be high in acid?

A lot of the acids and solvents (terpenoids) leached from the pine straw and onto your roof. It's is typical asphalt shingles then those solvents and acids will accelerate the decomposition of your roof. Oaks are bad for that, too (tannic acid).

After the volatiles leach then decomposition of the needles accelerate and you get production of very long chain, acidic hydrocarbons called humic acids. These acids do not much affect pH but act as a great buffering material and also increase water-holding capacity of the soil. Also, The buffering will help make ions available to plants over a longer period of time rather than a big jolt and depletion. If you till organic matter into the soil the soil fungi and bacteria will begin breaking it down. This immediately depletes nitrogen and phosphorus, so you will initially see plant leaves become chlorotic (yellow). So you spray on a liquid foliar fertilizer and get the plants back to normal. Or you mix in fertilizer with the organic matter when you prepare your bed for planting. In either case you will increase the capacity of the soil to exchange ions (cation exchange capacity). Usually a good thing.

Thanks Bot!

The shed roof is metal and I try to keep it cleared off. This time I let it go too long with everything that's been going on taking care of my parents the last few years.

I use it to pave my driveway close to the house to keep it from washing out and keep the dust down. I do have to replenish it every year.

Only because you spray used motor oil onto non paying customers and make them roll around in the needles eh?