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Choose the Best Garden Mulch for your Residential Landscape
There are different types of mulch for your garden or landscaping, each with its characteristics and qualities. Mulch helps to improve the quality and drainage of the soil, control growth of weeds, retain soil moisture, regulate the ground temperature, and improve the appearance of your garden. Understanding the qualities of the different types of mulch helps you choose the ideal variety for your garden.
Bark or Wood Mulch
Shredded wood chips are long-lasting mulches that gardeners do not need to replace periodically. Like the other varieties, wood chips reduce the need to weed your garden by allowing air and moisture to penetrate the soil when spread at a depth of less than 6 inches.
Peat Moss
Peat moss mulch is good for weed control, but requires a layer of about 2 to 3 inches to stifle vigorous grasses completely. Such a layer is thick enough to form a hard crust that reduces the amount of water that reaches the undesirable weeds. The steep cost of peat moss, coupled with its inability to resist wind damage, makes it unsuitable for some gardens.
Compost
Compost is common in vegetable gardens and annual flowerbeds since it is quite useful when it comes to regulating soil temperatures, retain moisture, and discouraging the growth and development of weeds. In addition to improving drainage, compost is vital in preserving nutrients and releasing them intermittently.
Leaves and Grass Clippings
Shredded leaves and grass clippings are inexpensive mulching options for a broad array of gardens. Shredded leaves feed beneficial earthworms in your garden, give back nutrients to the soil and are most beneficial when left to decompose before use. However, the finely shredded leaves could form a mat, preventing the absorption of moisture from the soil. In the case where weeds are spreading relentlessly; you should avoid grass clippings for some time until you resolve the problem.
Straw
During cold weather, straw mulch is instrumental in protecting tender plants from the elements due to its excellent insulating quality. Straw decomposes quickly; giving nutrients back to the soil at a rate higher than all other mulching options, and is especially useful around fruit trees and in vegetable gardens. Straw is also easy to apply, but due to its decomposition rate, you have to replace it regularly.
Finishing Touches
Mulch gives a natural appearance that gives finesse and beauty to your garden. Analyzing your landscape and garden needs is a must before you choose the mulch that best suits your plants and blends with your landscape. If you are looking to contrast and complement your garden hues and shades and highlight the aesthetic qualities of your garden, consider a stone mulch or a gravel mulch on the edges. Don’t be afraid to ask Melvin Mulch for mulch suggestions. Call Melvin Mulch at 414-856-9077 to talk with experts who can recommend the best mulch for your needs.