Western Hay Pea Mulch
Pea straw that feeds the bed as it goes.
Western Hay's Pea Mulch is pea straw in an 80 litre bag weighing 12 kilograms, made at Bindoon on the Great Northern Highway and confirmed non-GMO on Western Hay's own site. It releases nitrogen as it breaks down, which is what has made pea straw a favourite in the vegetable patch.
Or call the yard on (08) 9434 2290
Real stock, not a swatch. Blended products vary a little batch to batch, so treat these as a guide rather than an exact colour match.
Western Hay Pea Mulch details
Western Hay Pea Mulch at a glance
- Product type
- Pea straw mulch
- Pack
- 80 litre bag, 12kg
- Made at
- Bindoon, Western Australia
- Organic matter
- 90%
- pH
- 6.0
- Non-GMO
- Confirmed by Western Hay
What Western Hay Pea Mulch suits
What can you use Western Hay Pea Mulch for?
Vegetable beds and no-dig gardens
The classic use, and the reason people ask for pea straw by name. It covers the bed and feeds it at the same time, which suits a patch that is being cropped hard.
Strawberries and low fruit
Straw lifts the fruit off the soil, which keeps it cleaner and slows the rot that comes from sitting on wet ground.
Beds that want nitrogen
It releases nitrogen as it breaks down, so it is doing a second job while it does the first. A raw straw or a bark takes nitrogen instead of giving it.
Sloped beds where runoff cuts channels
Straw knits together, and on a slope that is an advantage — it holds soil in place where a loose chip would wash to the bottom.
How much Pea Mulch do you need?
Buy on depth, not on the headline
Western Hay put a bag at up to 18 square metres. That figure is a very thin spread, and it is not the depth they recommend anywhere else on their own site.
Both numbers below are theirs. We would rather print the one that sends you home with enough mulch than the one that reads better.
| At this depth | One 80 litre bag does | What it is for |
|---|---|---|
| Western Hay's headline | Up to 18m² | A very thin scatter. It will not block the light to germinating weed seed. |
| 5 to 7cm, as recommended | Closer to 1.5m² | The depth that actually suppresses weeds and holds moisture. Buy on this one. |
| Topping up mid-season | Two to three times further | A top-up is a thin layer over what is already there, so a bag goes much further. |
Keep it off the stems and trunks — straw held against a stem holds moisture there and promotes rot. Store the bag somewhere cool and dry until you get to it.
Western Hay Pea Mulch in Perth
Matting, drippers and Perth sand
Most Perth gardens water on a roster rather than by hand, so the water arrives on two or three fixed days and it has to count. A mulch that has matted into a crust sheds that water sideways instead of letting it through.
Perth sand compounds it. Once the surface has dried hard it goes water repellent, and water that cannot get through the mulch will not soak in at all — it runs to the low corner of the bed and sits there.
None of that makes pea straw the wrong choice. It makes it a choice with a maintenance step: run a rake through the layer when you notice water sitting on it, and it takes water again. If you would rather not think about it, that is what the sugar cane is for.
Why Western Hay Pea Mulch
Why choose Western Hay Pea Mulch?
It feeds while it covers
Nitrogen released as it breaks down, which is the difference between a mulch that only shades the soil and one that improves it. That is why it has been the vegetable gardener's default for decades.
A published composition
90% organic matter, crude fibre at 15%, moisture at 12%, pH 6.0. Western Hay put the numbers on their own site rather than leaving it at organic.
Confirmed non-GMO
Stated by Western Hay themselves. Worth knowing if you are growing food and it matters to you what went into the paddock.
Made an hour up the road
Bindoon, on the Great Northern Highway. Western Australian, and not trucked across the country to get here.
Getting Western Hay Pea Mulch home
How to get Western Hay Pea Mulch
Collect from the yard
Open seven days at 222 Barrington St, Bibra Lake. The loader puts it straight into your trailer or ute, and someone will tell you whether what you have brought will carry the load.
Borrow one of our trailers free for two hours to get your load home. No charge, no bond.
Have it delivered
Across Perth's southern suburbs, seven days. For a quote we need the address, how much you need, and anything awkward about access — tight driveways, low branches and side access all change which truck we send. Confirm the current cost when you order.
Formats
- 80 litre bag, 12kg
Using Western Hay Pea Mulch
How to use Western Hay Pea Mulch
Water the bed first
Mulch laid over dry Perth sand keeps it dry. Get the soil properly wet through before you cover it, or the layer works against you for the first month.
Spread it 5 to 7cm deep
That is Western Hay's figure. Keep it off the stems and trunks — straw held against a stem holds moisture there and promotes rot, which is the one mistake that actually kills plants.
Rake it if water starts sitting on top
It mats down when wet, more than sugar cane does. If you find water pooling on the surface rather than soaking through, lift the layer with a rake and it will take water again.
Top it up two or three times a year
Pea straw breaks down faster than the woody mulches, which is the price of it feeding the bed. Expect to top up rather than replace.
When to choose something else
When it is the wrong product
- It mats down when wet, more than sugar cane does. If your beds are on drippers and you have had water sitting on top of a mulch layer before, Sugar Cane Mulch is the one that stays open.
- Western Hay make no weed-seed-free claim for this product, so we are not going to make one for them. If a guaranteed weed-free mulch is what you are after, the pasteurised Lupin Mulch is the one to ask about.
- It breaks down quickly, at 2 to 3 months against 4 to 6 for sugar cane. That is a feature in a vegetable bed and a nuisance on a verge.
- It is not a decorative mulch. It looks like straw, because it is straw. For a front garden where the finish matters, the coloured mulches are what that job wants.
Customer reviews
What people say
Western Hay Pea Mulch questions
Western Hay Pea Mulch FAQs
Goes with Western Hay Pea Mulch
Other products you may need
The mulches this is chosen against
Sugar cane stays open, lupin is pasteurised. Both are worth knowing before you decide.
For the bed underneath
Mulch covers soil. These build it.
If it needs to last
Pea straw is a two-to-three-month mulch. These are the multi-year ones.
Guides for western hay pea mulch
Planning your project
GardenA Complete Guide to Mulching for a Vegetable GardenBibra Lake Soils2 February 2023 · 7 min read
GardenGarden Mulching 101: What You Need to KnowBibra Lake Soils28 April 2022 · 6 min read
GardenBuilding a Vegetable Garden in WA (Your Complete Guide)Bibra Lake Soils13 April 2020 · 16 min read
SoilBest Mulch to Stop WeedsBibra Lake Soils20 September 2024 · 4 min read
Western Hay Pea Mulch quote
Need Western Hay Pea Mulch for your project?
Send us the quantity you need, your suburb, and whether you would like to collect it or have it delivered. If you are not sure how much, put your measurements into the calculator above and we will check it for you.
Or ring the yard on (08) 9434 2290
222 Barrington St, Bibra Lake WA 6163 · Open 7 days
Use the calculator above and the amount lands in the message for you.