Get Out in the Garden

Reasons To Cover Your Garden With Mulch

17 June 2020

Steven Lee

If you're looking for a way to spruce up your garden, why not cover the garden beds with mulch? As well as adding decorative appeal, mulch will provide a bunch of other benefits. Read on to discover what these are. 

Minimises Weeding 

While you may enjoy creating your garden by planting plants and flowers, pulling up weeds is likely to rank lower on the pleasure scale. So any method to reduce this is worthwhile. Spreading mulch across your garden beds smothers weed growth, allowing you to appreciate your garden and cut down on tedious maintenance tasks. 

Adds Beauty 

Mulch adds to the beauty of your garden, covering dull soil with rich bark, colourful pebbles or sandy hay. The mulch will provide a background contrast against which the foliage can stand out. With bark, you can select different colours ranging from light tans to deep browns, while stones are available in various hues such as creams, blues and tans. You can either mix different colours of pebbles or spread an even tone across the soil. 

Retains Moisture 

Mulch helps the soil to soak up moisture, stopping it from evaporating. Over a hot summer, your plants will thrive better with this protective layer rather than in sun-baked dried-out earth. Plus, you can spend less time watering or save water with an efficient irrigation system. Mulch can also prevent water runoff during heavy rains; the water will become trapped within the mulch texture rather than just flowing away, across the top of the garden bed.

Nourishes The Soil 

Some mulches disintegrate over time, thus adding nourishment to the earth. This process, however, depends on its type and size. Hay decomposes faster than bark, and typically larger bark pieces will take longer to decompose than smaller pieces. Stones and pebbles don't break down; thus, you'll need to replace these less frequently. 

Provides Design Options 

You can use mulch, particularly pebbles, to create special effects—for example, spread cream hues across some garden beds and blue stones in others. If you do this in an orderly rather than random way, you'll create a more pleasing effect. For instance, you could cover beds around the garden perimeter with one colour and then emphasise a central garden bed with a distinct hue. You could also harmonise pebble mulch with gravel or stone paver pathways and patios. 

Overall, mulch will give a neat and finished look to your garden while helping to retain soil moisture and block weed growth. With various options in materials and hues, you'll be able to design your personalised yard and to showcase your beautiful plants. Your mulch delivery experts can advise on specific options available. 

To learn more about your options, contact a mulch delivery service.

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