Six Dos And Don’ts Of Mulching: Mistakes You Should Avoid While Mulching Your Garden

Growing plants in mulch will help your garden flourish, but your green buddies will be healthier and happier when you are familiar with the dos and don'ts of mulching.

Mulching offers several practical and decorative benefits to a garden. But making mulching mistakes can backfire and prevent your soil from enjoying the benefits like suppressing weeds, conserving moisture, minimizing water runoff, and reducing erosion. Here are six dos and don'ts of mulching that can help you avoid making gardening mistakes.

Do not use woody mulches on your veggie patch.

Woody mulches consisting of bark chips are not an ideal choice for your vegetable patch. Your vegetable garden will thrive better if you use cheap compost instead of using mulch. Adding a layer of woody mulch will make it difficult for you to hoe weeds quickly from between the rows.

Do remove old much

When you are re-mulching a soil bed, you must remove parts of the old mulch. Sometimes gardeners add several layers of mulch to the soil bed, so consider making time to remove layers of the old mulch that has accumulated over time.

Do not use excessive mulch.

The roots of the plants require oxygen to survive, and if you add a deep layer of mulch, it can curb the air supply. In addition, fungal growth can be another problem when you add a thick layer of mulch. It might lead to the development of fungal mats and repulse the water that you are trying to preserve by using mulch. Just using one inch of mulch layer would be enough and also economical.

Do avoid fresh mulches.

Mulch materials like manure, shredded brush, or hay may carry weed seeds and also contain herbicide residues that harm and even kill plants. Allow fresh mulch to sit for a couple of months and leach out all the harmful residues and let seeds of weeds germinate and die. It is even better if you compost the mulch before use.

Do not allow mulch to touch your house.

If damp mulch touches the siding of your house, it will create a path for pesky pests and termites, leading to your home. You can use mulch against a concrete wall, but you should try to keep it at least six inches away from any type of wooden structure.

Do clear out weeds before mulching.

While a fine layer of mulch can stamp out young, small weeds, you should not expect it to miraculously terminate well-established weeds. Ideally, you should remove big and stubborn weeds before mulching the soil, or they will pop out through the mulch.

Turn your weed-infested garden into a healthy paradise by following the above-mentioned mulching tips.