Q:I do a lot of woodworking and have lots of sawdust. Last spring I put a layer of cedar sawdust on my vegetable garden. I was not happy with the plant growth I got from beans, eggplant, radishes, etc. Is there something in the cedar that inhibited growth?

A: I don’t think cedar sawdust would inhibit plant growth. On the other hand, it probably would inhibit seed germination like most tree sap extracts do.

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That said, sawdust of any kind can get wet and then be slow to dry, which would inhibit the soil drying out like it should between rains.

I’d use an inch layer of sawdust/shavings under landscape shrubs but not under flowers or vegetables.