Mulching: Tips and Tricks

Time for part two of my ‘mulching series’…some tips for applying mulch.

I usually mulch after I have finished planting annuals. Annuals need to be planted in soil and not mulch, so the process of pushing aside mulch, planting flowers, and then replacing the mulch is a little too time-consuming for my liking. Once all my spring planting/transplanting is complete, and the soil is not saturated I begin mulching my gardens.

Now, it is one thing to just throw mulch on a bed but it is another to apply it with finesse. This is your finishing touch, after all! Attention to detail during this step goes a long way! Here are a few pointers on how to make your mulching job look top notch…

Leave no Trace

Start at the back of the bed and work forward so that you don’t have to trample on freshly applied fluffy mulch… footprints never look nice in a garden bed! If you must walk on your newly applied mulch- fluff out your footprints! It’s really all about keeping a nice uniform look to the bed.

I feel a bit like a crime detective by circling footprints on the ground! Be a sneaky gardener- don’t leave your footprints behind! They really do look awful in a garden bed!

Mulch the Beds NOT the Plants!

I know it is easy to just toss mulch into a bed and call it a day. Usually the plants get in the way. Take the time to brush the mulch off the greenery; the mulching job will look much tidier.

Show off your Curves (or Straight Lines…)

With all the work done to create nice definition to your garden beds through the use of edging, don’t throw all that work away by filling the edges in with mulch (or, even worse, allowing the mulch to overflow onto the grass!). Avoid this problem by tapering out the mulch as you approach the edge of the bed. This technique will keep the garden edge visible and clearly defined.

By tapering the mulch out as you approach the edge of your garden bed, you can retain a nice crisp edge!

Don’t be smothering…

…give your plants some space by not piling up mulch around the base of them. This is an important tip from a plant health perspective. Piling up mulch against the base of perennials, shrubs and trees provides a nice cozy environment in which critters (such as insects, and microorganisms) can live. Many of these critters can negatively impact your plants through feeding or causing disease. I realize that not having mulch right up to the plants interrupts the uniformity of the mulching job. I work around this by applying a ‘sprinkling’ of mulch around the plants just to give the appearance that the area has been mulched when in fact it hasn’t been. Think of it like a dusting of icing sugar on a cake.

If this blue oat grass (Helictotrichon sempervirens) on the left could speak, it is saying “I love you, but I need my space…” Ouch. Don’t get smothering! Taper out the mulch around your plants. A ‘dusting’ around your plants can give the illusion that the mulch layer is continuous.

And there you have it! A couple long-winded posts about mulch. Much more can be written about this topic, but I will save background information for the winter :) Right now it’s time to get out there and garden!