Do you ever wonder how much mulch you should be putting in your garden?

Mulching is applying any material over the roots that will retain moisture, control weeds and help cool the roots of the plant.  Some elaborate schemes have been concocted for “just the right” mulch, but mulching is really a simple technique. If you have the opportunity to apply mulches now, do so! It will help relieve drought and heat stress on plants and save watering.

Commonly applied mulches are compost, shredded tree bark, and shredded leaves. There are a few matters to consider before putting mulch down:

Are you using fresh materials or have they been composted? If you use fresh materials, add some fertilizer containing nitrogen to the surface of the soil before the mulch is put down. This is necessary because fresh materials will “grab” or deplete nitrogen in the soil as they decompose.

Are you putting down plastic? Some people put down plastic before they apply mulch. Plastic should be used only if soils are very moist BEFORE it is laid down. With our drought conditions, you may want to wait and use plastic in the spring.

As we enter the fall season, mulch’s best use is on newly planted trees and shrubs. One important point – do not pile mulch against the trunk because it can damage the tree’s bark. Make sure the mulch covers the area beneath the tree because the root system needs the heat insulation and drought protection. 

On cultivated, established annual and perennial beds where leaves of the plants are touching, it may be difficult to apply mulch now. You may want to wait until late fall when the beds have been cleared of the season’s growth.

The amount of mulch that should be used is often debated. Many central Virginia gardeners are using mulch for moisture retention on non-irrigated landscapes with heavy (even compacted) clay soils. In such situations, two to three inches of hardwood bark is plenty. Applications thicker than that will dry out between rainfalls and will shed precious rainfall before re-hydrating.

Mulch—not exactly the most exciting of garden topics, but it always seems to prompt some questions! Do you have any?

Beth Monroe is public relations director at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden.

I used a 4 or 5 thickness of newspaper(no slick inserts)around my boxwoods, topped with pine needles, as a mulch for the winter.  What do you think? These are in the front of the house by my walk. I don’t have a ready source of hardwood mulch.

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