The cost is about the same in either format ... or 160 square feet. Pine needle or pine straw mulch costs about $150 per yard. It is sometimes priced by the square foot, with an $85 to $95 ...

Crews disproportionately made of young, Mexican men bale pine straw by hand. They're not always fairly compensated.

Pine producers looking to diversify their streams of revenue have a "gimme": the dead needles that cover the forest floor.