Barks & Mulches to Retain Moisture, Enrich the Soil and Add Colour & Texture to Your Garden Landscape |
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It can't be emphasized enough that the application of a good layer of mulch on your garden is just as critical as choosing a good soil blend. But first …. What is a mulch? Basically a mulch is any form of organic matter that can be used as a barrier between the atmosphere and the soil. This can include, Pine Bark, Forest Mulch, Sugar Cane Mulch or even grass clippings. In fact when you are next walking in a rain forest, just look down and you will see mother nature at work, mulching her own “garden!” as the paths are generally covered in decaying organic matter. All mulches are held in huge storage bays at the depot in Darra where you can see them in the “flesh” and pick up a shovel full or trailer load as well as arrange for a delivery to your home at a time that suits you.
So why is a mulch so important? And what will it
do to help the garden thrive?
MOISTURE CONTROL is by far the most important reason for mulching. Without a good layer of mulch (100mm or 4”), the sun and wind will cause the top 100mm of soil to dry out very quickly putting your plants under extreme stress in a very short space of time. By mulching, the rate of evaporation is slowed dramatically and with the advent of water restrictions, any saving of water usage can only be beneficial not only to the environment but to our hip pockets too.
WEED PREVENTION Having a physical barrier on top of the soil will inhibit weeds. Once a seed germinates and reaches the soil surface it needs sunlight to photosynthesize (produce food for growth). If a mulch is in place, just itʼs physical presence will prevent most, if not all, potential weed problems thus allowing your plants to thrive without competition. NB. Donʼt use plastic under mulch, it prevents the passage of water and gases into the soil and therefore this can hinder plant growth. We suggest you use "Weed Stop".
TEMPERATURE MODERATION is another benefit of having this physical barrier. In our Queensland climate, soil will absorb a considerable amount of heat which in an un-mulched garden causes damage to sensitive plant roots near the soil surface. Also in those areas that have mild frosts, the mulch will again moderate the temperature making your garden a more “enjoyable” environment for your plants to grow!
REPLACING ORGANIC MATTER in the soil blend as a mulch decays, by maintaining itʼs open free draining structure. This can be seen if you walk through any rainforest or bushland where the ground underfoot is covered in decaying organic matter... nature's way of mulching.
A WIDE RANGE OF MULCHES available, means that you can create different styles of gardens with the mulch having a real decorative or discrete feature in the design. All available mulches are on display at Centenary Landscaping Supplies and you can buy any amount from one bag to a semi-trailer load.
Which Is the Best Mulch?
This is a very common question and is a valid one considering that there are over 17 to choose from! But when its all said and done, it is true to say that in general, they will all do the same job with regards to moisture, weed and temperature control. In most cases, the buying decision can be based on colour, texture and the budget.
There are, however, a number of questions that can be asked to narrow the mulch field and help you choose the best mulch for you:
- Are you matching any other part of the garden?
- Have you seen one you like at the neighbours?
- Do you generally like coarse or fine materials as mulch?
- Is this a show garden, or down the back?
- Am I just tidying the gardens up to prepare for the house to be sold?
- Is it a vegetable or herb garden?
Again a very common but vital question when looking at any gardening project. What you need to do is work out the area of the garden to be covered and simply divide by 10 which gives you the volume needed in cubic metres if the mulch layer is going to be 100mm (4inches).
Another way of thinking about it is: One cubic Metre will cover ten square metres at a depth of 100mm (4 inches). Always remember, that you can call us at the office and get us to check over your figures if you just wanted to make sure …. Sometimes two heads are better than one!
What About Plastic or Weedmat?
One of the main reasons for actually mulching the garden is to minimize the amount of weeds that come through and there is no doubt that putting a layer of material under the mulch will help prevent weeds coming through.
That said, plastic should definitely NOT be used as a weed control mechanism. The reason for that is that while it will stop a lot of weeds, it will not let water drain through the mulch and into the soil where it needs to be in order to be accessed by the plants. It also could trap small pools of water under the mulch that could become stagnant and smell, or breed mosquitoes.
If you are reading this and have already used plastic…. The solution is to wander around the garden with a garden fork, punching holes through the plastic layer so that water can drain away. Weedmat or Mulchmat are thin woven fabrics that will let the soil breathe, let the water drain through while preventing most weeds from coming through.
