Mulch is a must around plants and shrubs for multiple reasons. Here are 10 mulching tips to help keep your landscape looking great.

Why Mulch?

There are many reasons for mulching your gardens and trees. Here are a few:

• Prevents weeds
• Conserves moisture
• Reduces erosion
• Decreases water runoff

In order to reap all the benefits of mulch, there are certain practices to follow.

Basic Mulching Tips

Before you lay down one layer of mulch, keep these 10 tips in mind:

1. Plan ahead. There should be a balance between the number of plants and mulch used. Instead of making a full, empty bed of mulch, grow your garden, shrubs, and trees, and add a layer of mulch around all of them.
2. Clean it up. When re-mulching a bed, remove some of the old mulch instead of layering and creating too much build-up.
3. Change it up. You don’t have to use the same type of mulch throughout your garden. Thinner mulch is better for areas around the edge of pavement or tree trunks. Also, you don’t always have to use the same type as before. Straw, bark, and even cocoa bean shells can all be used as mulch.
4. Class it up. For all the benefits it has for your garden, one is also appearance. Match colored mulch to complement the exterior colors of your home. Use dark mulch to make colorful flowers really pop. Enhance your landscape theme with different types and textures.
5. Cover up. Add mulch to my bare spots of soil on your property to help prevent further erosion and runoff.
6. Mulch, by the numbers. There’s such a thing as too little and too much mulch. Use about three inches of organic mulch around beds. There are exceptions depending on the type of mulch you use and the type of plants in your garden. Plants lower to the ground won’t need as much of a layer.
7. Protect trees. Mulch around the base of young trees to help protect the area and create a marker for mowers.
8. All you need is mulch. You don’t need a layer of plastic or landscape fabric underneath your mulch. In fact, this can prevent water from getting to the soil and cause more runoff.
9. Use good mulch. Know what you’re getting, and make sure it’s from a trusted source. Some mulch could be delivered with weed seed floating around in it depending on where it was stockpiled.
10. Ask for help. If you have questions about the right type of mulch for your gardens and how to best protect your beds, ask around at your local lawn and garden shop, or contact Cardinal Lawns today.

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