Landscaping and gardening around your home is a wonderful way to improve its aesthetic appeal. Unfortunately, there is often a lot of maintenance required to keep plants, trees and shrubs watered during the hotter months of the year. One way to prevent the need for continuously watering and cleaning the garden or landscape is to make use of bark mulch. Mulch is an ideal addition to any home or business garden and has a myriad of benefits that will not only save you time, but save water and money as well.
How it Saves Water
The reason mulch saves water is because it naturally holds onto moisture and keeps the top soil moist. Likewise, the mulch prevents excess sun from drying out the ground, which would otherwise cause the roots of your plants and shrubs to become dry and need continuous watering. The right type of mulch will prevent evaporation by shielding the soil from the sun. You will find that the more bark mulch you add to your landscaping, the less you have to pull out the hose for a thorough watering.
How it Can Be Used
Mulch can and should be used around any flower bed, veggie patch, tree or shrub that requires routine watering. It can also be used in areas that tend to get a lot of weeds, since the mulch will act like a barrier to prevent weeds from surfacing and coming to light. There are a range of different mulch options available, from organic matter to bark, hardwood, rock and hemlock varieties. The type of mulch you choose depends on what you’re looking for it to do, how you want it to look and the price that you’re willing to pay for it.
Other Key Benefits of Using Mulch
Along with being an amazing option for saving water throughout the warmer months of the year, bark mulch prevents excessive weed growth and enriches the soil. Many mulch varieties contain nitrates and nutrients that, when placed on top of moist soil and watered regularly, will release these minerals into the ground. Some mulch varieties decompose faster than others, which is also essential for a rich and robust soil. This process for a darker and more fertile soil that is ideal for lots of different veggies, fruits, flowers, plants, trees and shrubs. The mulch acts like a barrier for weeds, preventing them from getting sun which then inhibits their growth.
No matter what type of mulch you choose for your landscaping, it’s essential that it’s high-quality, long-lasting and is going to be an ideal match for the types of plants or shrubs that you’re growing. A three to almost four-inch layer of mulch is more than sufficient for light weed inhibition and moisture locking, but a professional landscaper and mulch expert will be able to advise you on your own specific needs. Many homeowners will also mix their mulch, providing both a fine and coarse texture that is best for keeping the plants as moist as possible while preventing weeds from breaking through. While mulch is mainly used for its beneficial purposes, it is also often used to finish a landscape because of how fresh and vibrant the mulch looks when put down. Save water with mulch, call Melvin.