Now’s the Time to Mulch Your Garden

Applying an organic mulch is one of the best things you can do for your garden and perennial beds this time of year. The right mulch will help conserve moisture, reduce plant damage and protect and improve the soil, through the course of the winter.  Garden and landscape mulches are available in two types, organic and inorganic. Organic mulches include shredded wood, screened bark, bark nuggets. Inorganic mulches include rock, gravel and artificial products such as shredded rubber.  Technically, both types of mulch will work, but for the most effective mulch in terms of winter plant protection, moisture conservation and soil stabilization and enrichment, choose organic mulch. 

 For perennial beds, shredded bark, bark nuggets and screened bar work well, while providing a natural look. The goal is to apply a three to four-inch layer of mulch to your perennial beds.  A two cubic foot bag of small bark will cover eight square feet three inches deep. A two cubic foot bag of shredded cedar or Gorilla Hair mulch will cover eight square feet three inches deep. Soil Pep is screened bark no larger than 3/8” which can be applied as mulch. A bag of Soil Pep will cover approximately ten square feet two inches deep. Soil Pep can be incorporated into the soil come spring. You may have read that using bark mulches will lock up the nitrogen in the soil. While true, the advantages of using biodegradable material as mulch far outweighs the loss of a small amount of nitrogen. For your vegetable garden, use organic compost as mulch. If you have access to leaves, spread them out evenly over the bed, then cover with three inches of organic compost such as Sheep, Peat and Compost. Through the course of the winter this mulch layer will protect the soil structure and micro biome. Come spring, work what’s left into the soil and you’re ready to plant.