So, are you preparing your yard to look best during the growing season? Well, mulching is one of the easiest and most effective ways to elevate the appearance and overall state of your garden beds.
Mulch doesn’t only make your landscape look much better, but it also helps your plants grow better by releasing nutrients into the soil after decomposition. More importantly, mulching helps maintain adequate moisture in the soil, minimizing the need to water as often.
Before you go ahead and buy your mulch bags, it’s important to know how much mulch you need. When you head out to measure the areas that need to be covered, you might wonder where you should use mulch. Is mulching the whole landscape a smart move? Should you avoid mulching specific spots? Read on to find out.
Why Is Mulching Necessary?
Before we delve into where you should and where you shouldn’t apply mulch, let’s take a close look at how mulch works first.
Mulching your garden beds can be a real game-changer in terms of the aesthetics and healthiness of your greenery. But don’t just take our word for it. Research has shown that mulch has numerous benefits, such as nurturing soil, suppressing weeds, and regulating temperature. Here’s how:
Improving Soil
Applying mulch is like providing a protective shield to your soil. That’s because mulch protects the soil against erosion, which is often caused by wind and water. Mulch also minimizes soil compaction, which affects plant roots and stunts their growth.
Studies have shown that applying a thin mulch layer of just 0.6 inches can reduce soil erosion by 86%. Sounds too good to be true? Well, it is! The best part is that there are cheap materials, such as straw and crop residues, that work well as mulch.
Conserving Soil Moisture
Moisture control is one of the most valuable mulch benefits. When you apply mulch to your garden beds, it slows down water evaporation, especially during hot weather. This helps maintain a consistent level of moisture in the soil, allowing your plants to grow better.
Strong winds, tough climates, and even weeds promote water evaporation. That’s when mulch comes in handy. Straw mulch, for example, can decrease water evaporation by 35%. Organic mulch, like crop residues or livestock waste, is incredibly effective in reducing water evaporation as it increases water retention and soil percolation. This means that mulch can minimize the need for irrigation as it acts like a sponge, holding water and providing consistent moisture for your plants.
Suppressing Weeds
Have trouble eliminating weeds? Then mulching is your best bet. Research has shown that mulching can reduce weed populations by up to 92%. But how exactly? Since mulch acts as a natural barrier, it blocks sunlight from directly reaching the soil, which hinders weed seed germination.
Over time, when organic mulch decomposes, it releases chemicals that deter weed growth in the soil. And guess what, if you use living mulch, it’ll compete with weeds for resources, hindering weeds from getting their required nutrients to thrive.
Where Should You Apply Mulch?
Looking at the numerous mulch benefits, you might be tempted to lay it down all over your yard. But this is a common mistake among novice gardeners.
That’s because adding too much mulch around plants can do more harm than good. Here are some specific instances where applying mulch is advantageous.
Around Spring Bulbs
If you have spring bulbs in your garden, it’s crucial to mulch around them as their foliage dies back. That way, you don’t only provide your spring bulbs with essential nutrients, but you also help them retain moisture during a crucial phase of their growth cycle.
Moreover, when you apply mulch around spring bulbs, it minimizes the need for frequent digging. The problem with frequent digging is that it can easily ruin your bulbs if not done correctly.
Around Herbaceous Perennials
Adding mulch, especially dark organic mulch, around herbaceous perennials can improve the overall aesthetic of your perennials.
To get the most out of mulch around your perennials, apply mulch after dividing and watering these plants. This will give your plants a decent boost during their growing season.
Under Hedges
Some gardeners often neglect taking care of their hedges and only trim them occasionally. Apart from regular trimming, your hedges can significantly benefit from annual mulch application. But why?
That’s because the roots of hedges are usually densely packed, but mulching aids in retaining moisture and nurturing your plants. Before applying mulch under your hedges, make sure that the soil is adequately moist.
Around Trees and Bushes
When mulching your garden beds, don’t forget to apply a layer of mulch around fruit trees and bushes, especially during the fruit-forming stage. During the fruit-forming phase, fruit trees demand sufficient moisture around their roots to thrive better.
Fortunately, mulch doesn’t only lock in moisture, but it helps with weed suppression as well, which is vital to maintaining healthy trees.
Where Not to Use Mulch
Now that you know where you should apply mulch, it’s time to talk about where you should avoid applying mulch. Even though mulch can do wonders for your greenery, there are some scenarios where you should avoid applying mulch.
In Areas That Collect Water
As we mentioned earlier, mulch does a great job of retaining moisture. While these moisture-retaining properties are useful for your greenery, they can do more harm than good if you apply mulch in low-lying or water-collecting areas.
That’s because these areas already collect water. If there’s mulch in these spots, it can lead to waterlogged soil and root rot. But what if these areas need to be mulched?
In that case, it’s best to opt for well-draining mulch and avoid piling it too high to avoid moisture issues.
Against the Base of Trees and Shrubs
While it’s beneficial to mulch around bushes, you should steer clear of mulching directly against the base of trees and shrubs. This might seem like a perfect spot for mulching, but it creates a favorable environment for pests and diseases that can eventually kill your plants.
More importantly, mulching directly around the base of trees and shrubs can entrap extra moisture, leading to serious problems like root rot and decay. The solution here is to leave a small gap between your plants and mulch to allow better circulation.
Near Buildings, Walls, and Fences
Finally, be cautious when placing mulch near structures like buildings, walls, and fences. Mulch is good at drawing in termites, and once these uninvited guests are around, they can easily venture into the wood of these structures, causing damage. To stay on the safe side, mulch a few feet away from any structures in your garden.
Final Thoughts
There you have it. Now you know where and how to mulch your yard efficiently. Remember that mulching isn’t just about decoration, but it has incredible benefits for your soil and plant as well.
Applying mulch around spring bulbs, herbaceous perennials, trees, and hedges can improve moisture retention and suppress weeds, allowing your plants to grow better.
Be careful, though. You shouldn’t apply mulch directly near areas that collect water or buildings to avoid problems like root rot, waterlogged soil, and termites.
By following our simple tips, you’ll be able to get the most out of your mulching project. So go out there and spread the mulch love!
Ben has a bachelor’s degree in construction engineering. When not constructing or remodeling X-Ray Rooms, Cardiovascular Labs, and Pharmacies, you can find him at home with wife and two daughters. Outside of family, He loves grilling and barbequing on his Big Green Egg and Blackstone Griddle, as well as working on projects around the house.
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