{"id":40464,"date":"2016-05-31T09:32:20","date_gmt":"2016-05-31T13:32:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/?p=40464"},"modified":"2020-11-03T03:38:30","modified_gmt":"2020-11-03T08:38:30","slug":"3-mulch-mistakes-you-should-never-make","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/3-mulch-mistakes-you-should-never-make\/","title":{"rendered":"Avoid These 3 Mulch Mistakes"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>If you\u2019re not mulching in your garden, it\u2019s about time you started. Every gardener needs the aid of mulch to keep the gardening growing its best. When used correctly, mulches:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>help maintain soil moisture in warm climates<\/li>\n<li>regulate soil temperature levels<\/li>\n<li>keep down troublesome <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/mulch-your-weeds-and-grass-the-right-way\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">weed growth<\/a><\/li>\n<li>help prevent erosion<\/li>\n<li>add vital nutrients to the soil<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>However, there\u2019s definitely a bit of an art to getting the mulch laid properly. Mulching done poorly can be more detrimental than not mulching at all. Here are three common mistakes to avoid in your garden, orchard or landscape.<\/p>\n<h2>1. Making a &#8220;Mulch Volcano&#8221;<\/h2>\n<p>Working as a landscaper in my youth, I spent a lot of time hauling and placing mulch. When visiting the various homes of my clients, the most common mulching mistake I witnessed was the use of too much,too close to the stem or trunk of the plant\u2014we called this the mulch volcano.<\/p>\n<p>When mulching around a plant or tree, dense mulches should never be piled up directly on the trunk or stem because it will keep the trunk too wet, encourage shallow root systems and can actually kill your beloved plants. Instead of mounding thick mulch beds against the tree, spread it at an even thickness (a maximum 3 to 4 inches deep ) around the plant to the edge of the drip line, leaving a slightly thinner layer near the trunk or stem.<\/p>\n<h2>2. Using Uncomposted Organic Mulches<\/h2>\n<p>Organic mulches are some of the best mulches around, as they break down slowly and add helpful nutrients to the soil. One common mistake that many homeowners often make is the use of uncomposted organic materials, such as grass clipping or wood from a chipper. These substances all can make relatively effective mulches when properly treated, but \u201cgreen\u201d unprocessed materials right from the mower or chipper should not be used immediately.<\/p>\n<p>The major issue with these \u201cgreen\u201d or raw mulches is that rather than adding nutrients to the soil, the initial decomposition process will often leech out essential nutrients, like nitrogen from the soil below. This primarily applies to homemade mulches\u2014if you\u2019re purchasing it from a reputable nursery, this typically isn\u2019t an issue, as most commercially available mulches are composted before reaching consumers.<\/p>\n<h2>3. Sourcing Free Mulch<\/h2>\n<p>Avoid the tragic consequences of using free municipal mulch that comes from county or city-waste departments. These are often uncomposted, potentially full of pesticide-ridden materials and may contain destructive pests, such as termites. It\u2019s important\u2014especially if you\u2019re an organic gardener who wants to know exactly what chemicals are coming in contact with your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/13-low-maintenance-vegetables-for-a-no-hassle-garden\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">edible produce<\/a>\u2014to have a clear understanding about where your amendments come from.<\/p>\n<p>As we make our way into the warm summer months, mulch can be a huge helper in your garden. Just make sure you\u2019re laying it right.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mulch is a garden must, but if you don&#8217;t use the right type and apply it correctly, it can inhibit the growth of your plants. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":119,"featured_media":40465,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[58,43],"tags":[10359],"class_list":["post-40464","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-crops-gardening","category-urban-farming","tag-garden-in-front-lists"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v22.0 (Yoast SEO v24.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Avoid These 3 Mulch Mistakes - Hobby Farms<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Mulch is a garden must, but if you don&#039;t use the right type and apply it correctly, it can inhibit the growth of your plants.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/3-mulch-mistakes-you-should-never-make\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Avoid These 3 Mulch Mistakes\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Mulch is a garden must, but if you don&#039;t use the right type and apply it correctly, it can inhibit the growth of your plants.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/3-mulch-mistakes-you-should-never-make\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Hobby Farms\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hobbyfarms\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-05-31T13:32:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2020-11-03T08:38:30+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/31093133\/mulching-mistakes_istock.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"462\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Kevin Fogle\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@hobbyfarms\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@hobbyfarms\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Kevin Fogle\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/3-mulch-mistakes-you-should-never-make\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/3-mulch-mistakes-you-should-never-make\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Kevin Fogle\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/person\/9b8814af86aed1f17d737f102b1441d2\"},\"headline\":\"Avoid These 3 Mulch Mistakes\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-05-31T13:32:20+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2020-11-03T08:38:30+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/3-mulch-mistakes-you-should-never-make\/\"},\"wordCount\":477,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/3-mulch-mistakes-you-should-never-make\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/31093133\/mulching-mistakes_istock.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Garden In Front; 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