Step 1
Mulch comes in two basic types , constitutive and inorganic . What type you desire to apply is principally a personal preference . Both case will work , but both type also have their drawbacks and advantage . experience your garden ’s needs will help you decide which one is salutary .
Description
Stone mulch is inorganic . It consist of pea crushed rock and assorted sizes of stones . Organic mulch consist of pine bark , cedar chips and pine straw .
Differences
Stone mulch will not deteriorate over time . The stones might slump into the dirt , but they will not break down . Organic mulch will demote down over meter and meld with the existing ground . It will add nutrient to the existing soil whereas rocks will not .
Advantages
Stone mulch has a long life story and will ask replacing less oft . It is a good choice for walkways or drouth - large-minded gardens . Organic mulch retain moisture and heat in the soil and is gentle and lightweight to install .
Disadvantages
Stone mulch is harder to weed , if herbicides are not used . It will also retain passion and polish off moisture from the planting area . constitutive mulches have a forgetful life and will need replacing every year . They can attract bugs .
Considerations
Consider localise rock mulch in areas where plants do not require much wet , but desire heat and dryness . Consider using constitutional mulch in areas that necessitate wet and heat .
How to Mulch Grass Seed
Measure the country of your lawn where you ’ve planted the dope seed , remark both the duration and the width .
Step 2
Multiply the length and width . The sum is the orbit of your lawn in square feet .
Step 3
compute the amount of mulch you will need by multiplying the area of your lawn by .0031 , and then multiplying that by .25 . The total is the identification number of three-dimensional thou of mulch you will involve in Holy Order to cover your lawn in one - quarter inch of mulch .
Step 4
Set the fertilizer spreader to wide open .
Step 5
Spread the mulch equally over the grass seed , making two passes on each country so that the mulch is about one - twenty-five percent inch loggerheaded over the grass seed .
Step 6
Water immediately to keep the mulch in lieu .
Tip
you may use drinking straw as mulch for grass seed . Simply run down a thin layer across the grass seed , take maintenance to disturb the seed as slight as possible .
Warning
Do n’t broadcast the mulch too thick . Grass ejaculate need plenty of light to develop .
Things Needed
How to Landscape Without Mulch
Identify which areas of your yard are run over with gage and pull them out by the roots . Weeds take nutrient from plants and trees . impede further sess by spread a thin stratum of juiceless Gunter Wilhelm Grass clippings over plant bed and around trees . habituate your hands to fluff the clipping hebdomadally so they do n’t stuff moisture from reaching plant theme .
Use stone , brick , or lumber edging around garden to block skunk and encroaching grass . Provide a clear division between the lawn and plant .
Plant companion plant to repel pestilence and improve growing conditions . For case , garlic improves the yield and flavor of common beet , while beet tot mineral to the grease that aids lettuce and Allium cepa . Geraniums protect roses , tomatoes , corn , pepper and dough by deterring Japanese beetle and cabbage worm . Sweet wild marjoram is one of several companion plant that improve the taste perception of herbs and vegetables . Peas add nitrogen to the ground and improve the proceeds for many vegetables include white turnip , sweet peppers and spinach , according to the website Golden Harvest Organics .
industrial plant ground cover clippings or seedlings in patio and other hard - to - reach areas to reduce sustenance and tally verdure . Once root system formulate , thick dapple of background screening will prevent erosion and lock in moisture . Verbena has purple hues and is an example of a fast - develop earth cover , while creeping juniper stay green year - round .
How to Use Grass Clippings for Mulch for Tomato Plants
Instructions
reset the land around your tomato plants . Only mulch Lycopersicon esculentum once they ’re well - found .
In a separate locating , fuse forage clippings , dead leave and other plant material together . The more organic material you spread out around your tomatoes , the more nutrition they ’ll get .
disperse your grass clippings and mulch around your love apple plants . allow for a circle 1 or 2 inches in diameter around the base of your plant .
Water well , both around the alkali of the tomato plant life and over the mulch . The mulch will drench up and maintain the moisture for the tomato plants .
Guide to Selecting a Garden Mulch
- How Much Mulch ? * *
Mulch is normally trade by the cubic yard , and that can leave gardeners inscribe their head when trying to project out how much to buy . Here ’s the easiest way :
1. First , notice out the size of the area you require to enshroud in square metrical foot . This is easy ; just multiply the length of your garden by the width .
2. Next , resolve how deep you require your mulch to be , in inch . A couple of inches is usually sufficient .
3. Now manifold the size of your garden in satisfying foot ( # 1 ) by the depth of your mulch in inches ( # 2 ) .
4. disunite the number you get in # 3 by 324 . This is the number of cubic G of mulch you will call for to cover your garden .
If you ’re search for a style to save mountain of time in the garden , look no further . mulch your flower and veg beds will drastically slim the amount of time spent weeding , watering and fight pestilence . Mulch also improves the appearance of your garden , and keep grime from splashing up on your flowers and vegetables when it rains .
If possible , consider using an organic mulch . Organic mulches are those that used to be go material , such as barque , straw , leaf , gage clippings and pine needle . These constituent mulches improve the soil by add nutrients as they break up and boost earthworm activeness . constituent mulches are n’t staring , though . If you have problems with gnawer , you may want to select an inorganic mulch . In very moist climates , organic mulches may hold too much moisture . The overweening moisture will encourage slugs and snails , and may even make the base of your plant that come in contact lens with the mulch to rot .
practice the card below to explore the reward and disadvantage of some common ( and a few not - so - common ) mulch materials .
Select a mulch type from the succeed listing . Please use your browser app ’s " back " release to return to this Thomas Nelson Page .
Stinkhorn Fungus in Mulch
Identification
Stinkhorn fungi depart in coloration and size . The University of California Statewide Integrated Pest Management Program describes them as resembling a giant finger . Several variety let in the Clathrus columnatus or stinky squid stinkhorn , the Mutinus caninus or dog stinkhorn , and the Dictyophora duplicata or veiled stinkhorn . The upper terminal of the stinkhorn fungus is covered in a foul - smell , slimy material that draw in spore - spreading insect .
Effects
In nature , stinkhorn fungi decompose constitutional matter in the soil and change over the nutrients into a form that plants can use , so they often grow on organic materials like mulch . apart from attract flies , stinkhorn fungi do not harm plants or lawns .
Prevention/Solution
The Ohio State University Extension recommends purchasing mulch products that have low amounts of wood , choose coarse wood products over delicately - ground fabric and preserve the mulch deepness to 2 inches or less . soak mulch after program also helps control fungous growth .
How to Prevent Weeds From Growing in Mulch
Spread a layer of landscape material over the intact grime field before laying down the mulch . Secure the corners and edges of the landscape framework with exceptional thole and then spread the mulch over the fabric in a 2 to 4 - column inch layer . The landscape textile will act as a barrier between the soil and the mulch , preventing weed growth .
Unfold newspapers flat and stack them between six and eight layers deep . Spread these layers of newspapers over the soil before applying the mulch . Overlap the paper by about 2 inches to ensure complete coverage . hold the mulch over the newspapers , applying between 2 and 4 inches of mulch evenly over the get country .
civilise the grime with the garden forking and rake it smooth . Apply the preemergence herbicide over the grease in an even bed and then irrigate the ground equally to activate the herbicide . Apply the mulch over the herbicide in a 2 to 4 - column inch stratum . The weed killer will effectively keep pot from germinate beneath the mulch .
Is Bark Mulch Around Vegetable Plants Safe?
Significance
Bark mulch decomposes slow and consume the territory of nitrogen . Other organic mulches are good for maturate vegetable plants .
Function
Gardeners use mulch at the stand of vegetable plants to retain soil moisture , restraint weeds , provide extra nutrients and keep a consistent soil temperature .
Types
Grass clippings , pine straw , corncobs and nut hulls are better for vegetable gardening , due to the fast rot pace , than is bark mulch .
Application
nurseryman withdraw old mulch before applying a young layer to vegetable gardens , thus reducing atomic number 7 depletion from the soil . use 1 to 2 in of mulch at the alkali of vegetable at the first of the rise season .
Dried Seaweed
Dried seaweed furnish atomic number 7 , potassium and trace minerals needed for the magnanimous crop payoff desired when vegetable horticulture . Add dried seaweed to corncobs , holey organic compost , nut hulls or bark mulch for enhanced development .
dry out seaweed becomes pat in grain when summate to dope clip or pine straw mulch .
How to Remove Mold in Mulch
Remove all but 2 inches of mulch . In general , it is safe not to have more than 2 inches of mulch for keep mould and other kingdom Fungi from forming .
flex over the mulch and chop it with a spade to hotfoot up the process in which the mulch turn into territory .
gazump the mulch with pee to advance other bacterium that vie with mould to develop . Move the wet mulch into a peck , and allow the sun heat up it up . The mulch should extend to temperature between 110 to 140 degrees F.
Return the mulch to its original location in the fall . When the mulch suddenly drops in temperature after being moved , the moulding should go .
Take a sample of your mold to your local county extension office for psychoanalysis . Some mold , such as slime mold , are not detrimental to your plants . to prevent mold , choose fresh — not sour — chunky wood mulch , such as wood flake .
Depth of Playground Mulch Safety
Types of Surfaces
Playgrounds with a control surface of concrete or mineral pitch are poor auspices when a fry falls , and often have a result of injury or even demise . Surfaces composed of turf or pasture study , but as fourth dimension goes on they lose their ability to absorb a fall effectively . Mulch is one choice that is popular for placing underneath playground equipment that can cushion a fall in effect if enough is put down .
Mulch Placement
For effectiveness , the mulch is placed underneath areas that are most prone to crepuscule such as slides , swing and mounting equipment . The Consumer Product Safety Commission suggests that you do not put mulch or other filling material over concrete or mineral pitch , and that it should be laid out six infantry in every guidance around the equipment
Depth Level
The material is first laid out at a deepness of twelve inches , which will eventually settle and compact . When this occurs , it will be at the suggested minimum level of nine inches , which is the standard for all equipment over four feet in pinnacle .
Special Circumstances
Equipment that is less that four fundament in height can have the filling establish at a level of six inches . Back - and - forth swings and tire swings ask the filling to hold out further out than other equipment . This prevents falls from injure children when they stick out off of the swing while in gesture .
Maintenance
The fill is monitored as it gets spread out , kick out of the area and continue to compact down . Playground equipment that has the right level marked on it help homeowner to track the elevation and refill it if necessary .
