There comes a time when every garden reaches the point where it appears to be getting a little out of control. When plants first help fill in, it can be quite exciting and fulfilling, but all too soon, the gangsters take over, or the luxuriant simply turns into chaos.
Check out the following ways, which we recommend to incorporate into your garden appear better immediately, with no work, before you run for the backhoe to take out all of the plants and start over. If you do that, your garden will look even worse than it did before.
The upkeep of your garden won't be eliminated entirely by implementing these strategies, but they will help keep it looking nice by providing it with more structure.
What Does Mulch Do?
The following is a list of the various ways that mulch may be used in your landscaping:
- Helps keep the weeds under control and makes it simpler to pull them out.
- Reduces the rate at which water evaporates, allowing you to spend less time and money watering your plants.
- Provides insulation for the soil, shielding plants from dangerously high temperatures.
- It gives the beds a finished and polished appearance.
Therefore, it is essential to ensure that your mulching is done correctly. The following are, in the opinion of landscape architects, researchers, and our experts, the greatest recommendations for how to mulch a yard.
How to mulch a garden
Mulching is something that can be done with relatively little effort, yet it offers a ton of benefits to your garden and the plants in it. You can cut down on the amount of time you spend watering and feeding your plants during the summer if you mulch them.
- The purpose of applying mulch is to cover the entire flower bed or just the area around the base of a plant.
- Add a top dressing of between 5-7 centimetres, such as compost or chopped bark.
- When the mulch has been worked into the ground after one to two years, it should be replaced.
To reap the full benefits of mulching, I typically cover the entire bed. The most essential step is to perform a thorough weeding of the beds in advance; failing to do so will result in the weeds taking over the beds, which is especially likely if you mulch and feed them.
What Type of Mulch is Best for Your Garden?
Now that we have the knowledge, we can appreciate our gorgeous mulch for all that it is and its many benefits. The kind of mulch that should be used is something that can be decided upon by us.
Bark chip mulch
If you are in the process of selling your house and are looking for a quick aesthetic makeover, bark chip mulch is a fantastic option to consider. The bark is available in various colours, allowing it to be employed as a decorative element that complements the design of your home and its surrounding landscape.
Poo mulch
We propose using mulch that is rich in organic components and manures for the majority of different types of gardening. This is the best of all worlds since it provides the numerous benefits of having solid mulch coverage in addition to all the wonderful things that come from composting, which enhance the quality of the soil by adding beneficial nutrients.
How long does it take to mulch?
Depending on the dimensions of the planting beds, the process of mulching could take some time. If you don't have much time, you could try to mulch around each individual plant instead. You can accomplish this by applying a thick layer of mulch all the way around the perimeter of each plant. On the other hand, mulching a set of flower beds or garden edges often just takes a couple of hours to complete in most gardens.
Mulching around plants
Spread the mulch around the plants carefully to a depth of about 1 to 3 centimetres. Be careful not to apply too much mulch, since this might cause the stems of the plants you are working with to rot and get damaged. Therefore, when it comes to this situation, little is more. You are free to apply additional mulch later in the growing season.
That is all there is to it; it is quite simple, making your yard look organised and put together.
Top Tips For Mulch Your Garden
1. Do Make Use of Mulch as an Accent Material
Mulching not only contributes to the development of healthy lawns but also improves their appearance. Make sure that the colour of the mulch you choose goes well with the brick, stone, stucco, and siding that are on the exterior of your home. Using black mulch can provide contrast with flowers, which will improve the style of your landscape. You can also use mulch to enhance the overall design and atmosphere of your landscaping.
2. Pick out mulching material with the ideal colour and texture for the job.
There is a diverse selection of mulch that can be purchased, each with its own colour and feel. When choosing a mulch for your garden, it is helpful to think of the mulch as an accent to the space, and you should also keep the surrounding areas in mind.
Consider, for example, the paint colour and the accessories that are currently in your house. What kind of fence do you have, and what colour is it? When selecting the ideal colour of mulch for your garden, it is important to take into account the entire garden as well as any structures that are located nearby.
So, which colour of mulch is the most desirable? The most prevalent type of mulch is a dark brown colour because of its low upkeep requirements and ability to conceal plant detritus. The compost that I've created is my go-to choice for dark mulch for garden beds. They refer to it as "black gold" due to its dark and uniform appearance, which continues to be effective throughout the entire season. It also does not have any large chunks in it (other mulches have "chunks" in them, such as wood chips, which have a tendency to float to the top after a few weeks).
The colour grey works really well for mulch, particularly in places with a lot of foot traffic. Pea gravel is the type of mulch that I prefer to use for outdoor areas and sidewalks that receive light foot traffic. It has a traditional appearance, performs well in terms of drainage, is easily accessible, and requires little in the way of upkeep.
3. You Should Not Ignore the Bare Soil
Researchers are discovering that mulching has substantial positive effects on the environment. According to Day, the presence of soil surface on your property will result in erosion and sediment flow. The use of mulch can be helpful in preventing soil erosion. According to research, bare soil lost almost five times as much sediment as soils that were covered with mulch.
4. Be careful of Plants That Can Climb Things!
Plants that grow by creeping stems, especially turf grasses like Bermuda grass, can be so robust at times that they will grow right under mulch if the conditions are favourable. If it's at all possible, steer clear of spreading mulch on or near these plants. You can edge that goes below and above the ground to keep them in check instead. You can also build a tiny trench alongside a bed to make it easier to notice runners trying to intrude and get rid of them before they enter the mulch.
5. You Should Not Automatically Assume That You Need Something Beneath
Some gardeners may use plastic or geotextiles, such as landscape fabric, to certain separate mulches, such as inorganic stone mulch, from the soil. Landscape fabric is an example of a type of geotextile. It is a common misconception that covering the ground with black plastic will prevent weed growth. The addition of a layer of plastic or landscape fabric, on the other hand, could result in an increased amount of water runoff and prevent your garden from having a clean and uncluttered appearance.
Avoid using landscaping cloth if you are going to be applying an organic mulch that will decompose, such as shredded hardwood bark. You want the mulch to be in contact with the ground so that it may enrich the soil. Plastic or landscaping fabric may restrict rain and water from penetrating the soil, which may, in turn, increase runoff. She also notes that weeds have the potential to grow into the landscape fabric.
It is possible for the plastic or landscaping fabric to become visible through the mulch if it is moved about or replaced. When plastic or landscaping fabric is visible through the mulch, the result is an ugly and unattractive appearance.
6. Reconsider the use of weed barriers and landscaping fabric
What should be placed underneath the mulch? In the vast majority of instances, it is not necessary to place anything underneath the mulch. In most cases, mulches can be spread right on top of bare garden soil without any additional preparation.
Landscape fabric is occasionally used as a weed barrier because some people believe that a layer of synthetic material can prevent weeds from growing over the long term. But is landscaping fabric necessary to use underneath the mulch? No, in most cases, the landscape fabric installation will result in more work and expense than it is actually worth. The use of landscape fabric is an additional expense that, in the short term at least, does not prevent weed growth. It can be an efficient approach to cleaning up a garden bed area fast, but the result will not last more than a season or two.
Mulch works excellently enough on its own and does not require a plastic tarp or black landscaping fabric beneath it. It is very simple for weeds to become entangled in the fabric of the landscape. By the end of the season, established weeds, even small ones, will push through the landscape fabric, which will continue for years after the installation is completed.
Weeds that are nearby will continue to grow and release their seeds, which will lead to more weed seeds falling on the mulch and beginning to germinate there. After a few years have passed, the effectiveness of the landscape fabric as a weed barrier will be significantly reduced. At this stage, the landscape fabric is not doing anything beyond making it more difficult to uproot weeds and dig holes for new plants.
How about using plastic sheets instead? Should I lay down a piece of plastic before putting down the mulch? No, plastic sheeting is not a suitable substitute for organic mulch when used as a weed barrier; rather than placing it on top of organic mulch, it should be laid down on its own. Even though thick plastic might provide a more effective weed barrier than landscape fabric, there is still the issue of new weed seeds being carried by the wind and landing in the mulch that is on top.
Plastic covering that is impermeable has the additional disadvantage of preventing natural water drainage patterns from occurring (so, during wet seasons, ponding mulch becomes soggy). Plastic sheeting and other synthetic layers can both contribute to water runoff and inhibit the garden soil from directly benefiting from the mulch. This is because plastic sheeting is more permeable than other synthetic layers (good organic mulch feeds the soil). In addition, if your landscaping plants cannot get enough water to reach their deeper roots, you'll have an even greater problem than weeds on your hands.
7. Buy a substantial amount of mulch
You are aware of the colour and texture that you want to find, as well as the quantity that you require and the stores that have it. The moment has come actually to go out and purchase the mulch.
At this point, many homeowners are curious whether it is more cost-effective to buy mulch in bulk or in bags. The pricing of mulch does not follow any discernible pattern or logic at all. One of the most difficult lessons I had to learn about mulching was that the price of mulch has much more to do with marketing than it does with the components or the quality as a whole.
When mulch is sold in smaller bags, it typically carries a price tag that is significantly higher per pound than its larger counterpart. Orders of bulk mulch that are transported in utility trailers or dump trucks are typically much, much more cost-effective per pound of mulch purchased. BUT – always do the handy bit of arithmetic to figure out and analyse the unit prices of different products. Also, don't forget to consider the delivery fees, which can vary greatly from one company to another.
8. Water and feed before placing mulch
One of the most important advantages of using mulch is that it helps to keep hydration in the soil matrix by lowering the amount of moisture that is lost to evaporation. Invest some time and effort into giving the area a thorough soaking with a sprinkler or another type of watering device. Before I put down the mulch, this is something that I like to do in the evening.
A helpful tip for mulching is to water the soil and plants BEFORE laying down the mulch. This will prevent you from needing to completely submerge (and potentially erode) the new mulch to provide water to the landscaping plants.
In addition to this, sprinkling on a granular slow-release organic fertiliser is a common practice. Our experts always decide to add high-quality organic plant food to the soil before covering it with mulch, even if they haven't taken the time to conduct an accurate soil test.
A helpful hint for mulching is that you can put fertiliser on top of it once it has been spread. This is perfectly acceptable. The majority of granular organic fertilisers are a dark brown colour, which allows them to blend in aesthetically. Furthermore, most of these fertilisers are designed to be applied on top, also known as a "top dressing."
9. Use only quality mulch
The most significant risk is obtaining your mulch from a source that is not dependable. For instance, if mulch was stored in close proximity to a field of weeds before it was delivered, it is possible that it may contain seeds of harmful weeds. It's possible that you won't be able to pay for that for a very long time.
10. Don't Use Dyed Mulch
If you use bagged mulch, make sure to check the label before using it because some mulches include natural dyes while others may be coloured with sprayed-on colourants that contain toxins that are harmful to children and pets. They can leach into the soil, killing off beneficial bacteria. We recommend using leaf mulch that has been composted instead since it has a more natural appearance and it also benefits the soil.
Butterflies and other helpful insects need a place to spend the winter, and leaf litter offers that habitat for them. It's a natural and renewable resource that people bag up and get rid of, and then they use a wood mulch to cover the same beds they used the bags for! Take a more zen approach to the garden and just let it be. The natural world is highly intelligent.
11. Mulch again frequently (depending on the type of mulch)
Not even mulch can last forever. At some point, it will be necessary to "refresh" all of the garden mulch.
Inorganic mulches such as pea gravel may be perfectly fine with only a little bit of raking just several times a year to fluff them up, and possibly adding a load of fresh gravel to "top them up" every year or 2. Pea gravel is an example of an inorganic mulch.
The logic, timing, and efficiency of an organic mulch system are practically faultless, just as those of the vast majority of biological systems.
In most cases, the application of organic mulches takes place twice a year, once in the early spring and once again in the late fall.
An essential piece of advice for mulching is to time re-mulching activities in accordance with the mulch schedule provided by nature. In the fall, trees lose their leaves, which results in the creation of a dense mat for the following growing season. This mat helps to retain moisture in the ground, protects the soil against extreme temperature swings, and prevents weeds from sprouting. Imitate nature, and you will most likely see an improvement in your outcomes.
During the winter, mulch protects the soil from experiencing cycles of rapid freezing and thawing. This protects the soil from heaving, which can cause harm to the roots of your plants. Even though mulch might not stop the soil from freezing entirely, it can stop it from freezing overnight. When applying winter mulch, it is preferable to wait until late October, after the ground has frozen, to do so. When the temperature gets warmer in the spring, removing the mulch will enable the plants to begin producing new growth.
Summary
The use of mulch in your garden can provide a number of aesthetic and functional benefits. When you mulch incorrectly, you can prevent your soil from receiving the benefits of mulching, including the conservation of moisture, the suppression of weeds, the reduction of erosion, and the reduction of water runoff. If you follow our guide and do each step in order, it will completely transform your garden.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it necessary to remove old mulch before applying new mulch?
In most cases, it is not necessary to remove all the old mulch before applying a new layer. However, it is recommended to break up and loosen any compacted or matted mulch to allow for better water penetration and air circulation. If the existing mulch layer is excessively thick or if there are signs of mould, disease, or pest infestation, it may be beneficial to remove a portion or all of the old mulch before adding fresh mulch.
Will mulching help prevent soil erosion in my garden?
Yes, mulching can play a significant role in preventing soil erosion. By creating a protective layer over the soil surface, mulch helps to absorb the impact of rainfall and minimizes the direct force of water on the soil. This reduces erosion caused by water runoff and helps maintain the integrity of the topsoil. Choose mulches that have good water absorption properties, such as wood chips or straw, for effective erosion control.
How often should I replenish or replace the mulch in my garden?
Mulch tends to break down over time due to weathering and decomposition. As a general guideline, it is recommended to replenish or replace mulch once a year. However, the frequency may vary depending on the type of mulch used, climate conditions, and how quickly it breaks down. Regularly check the condition of your mulch and add more as needed to maintain the desired thickness.
Can mulching attract pests to my garden?
While mulching can create a favourable environment for certain pests like slugs, snails, or rodents, proper mulch application and maintenance can minimize this risk. Avoid piling mulch directly against plant stems, as it can create hiding places for pests. Regularly inspect your garden for signs of pests and take appropriate measures if needed, such as using barriers or organic pest control methods.
When is the best time to mulch my garden?
The ideal time to mulch your garden is in the spring after the soil has warmed up and the risk of frost has passed. This helps to lock in soil moisture before the warmer months. However, mulching can be done at any time of the year. If you missed spring, mulch in summer to conserve moisture and moderate soil temperatures, or in the fall insulate plants during winter.
