OPINIONS ON VARIOUS MULCHES

Watch Reply
More
Mark unread Print Skip to new
FlamingoCarole Lilburn, GA(Zone 7b) May 10, 2005

Hello all! Your input would be greatly appreciated. I have eliminated all grass in my yard (which downslopes from the street to the house).
I have pretty much a "jungle" out there. Previously I have used pine straw for mulching but had a big problem with snakes. 80 bags of old pine straw later my ground is bare. I am considering various types of hardwood/pine/cypress mulches...most important is weed control and moisture retention.
Please share your likes and dislikes of what you have tried.
thanks so much!

Post #1460035
Quote
Chuck1260 Arroyo Grande, CA May 10, 2005

Gorilla hair works the best of anything I have used. Stays down, smothers the weeds pretty well and lasts for about four years in this climate. I am not sure if it is available in your area. It was too good at retaining moisture in some cases (CA natives) so I had to move it away from the trunks. It is not cheap and something similar using other bark than redwood might be available. It does fade from red to gray fairly soon.

Post #1460265
Quote
8ftbed Zion, IL(Zone 5a) May 10, 2005

cypress doesn't float but is expensive
pine bark floats and blows. If you've got a slope it will be at the bottom in the frog flushers you have.

I like fresh wheat straw every spring under the mini-orchard. Looks great, holds moisture and is fun to lay on and unbelievably, it stays put in strong wind. But by July I'm spraying roundup to eliminate the volunteer wheat field.

If it's for paths or a non-planting area then check around and find out where the city and the electric company dumps all the branches and trees they cut down and run through the shredder. It'll be free and will age to a gray color.

The downside of wood and bark mulch is that nitrogen is drawn from the soil for the mulch to decompose so if you use it in planting beds it'll behoove you to fertilize with extra nitrogen a few times a year.

With all mulch - make sure it's thick enough and it'll hold the moisture in.
I also like to put beds down in the fall under several inches of finely shredded leaves which don't blow away and return nutrients to the soil. In the summer I drive around picking up fresh bags of grass clippings (if I know they don't have dogs) and put that out about 2" deep at a time.

Post #1460268
Quote
barbur Port Lavaca, TX(Zone 9a) May 14, 2005

Last year was the first time I put down mulch to prevent weeds and to save the moisture. I used mulch from the county that was free. It wasn't as pretty and evenly sized as bought mulch but it was FREE. It worked better than I ever imagined, the only place that weeds came up was around the plant stem (don't put the mulch right up to the stem). I think the secret is to get it deep enough and when it's free I'm real generous with it, about 3-4 inches.

Post #1468541
Quote

Post a Reply to this Thread

Please or sign up to post.
Back to Forum Homepage

More Beginner Gardening Threads

Go to all Beginner Gardening threads
BACK TO TOP