Mulch: The Essential Ingredient for Fall Gardens

1
Mulch The Essential Ingredient for Fall Gardens
2

• A lot of gardeners think of mulch as an add
  on, something to beautify their garden beds
  with. In fact, black mulch is in style right now,
  creating contrast in gardens that is seriously
  eye-catching!
• Mulching in the autumn, however, isnt just
  about looks. Its about getting your garden ready
  for another winter season, in a cost-effective
  way. If you want a lush, beautiful garden next
  spring, you need to consider setting yourself up
  with a load of mulch in autumn.

3
What Is Mulch?

• Essentially, mulch is anything you use to cover,
  enrich and protect the soil in your garden beds.
  While some people will opt for leaves or grass
  clippings to cover their soil, good mulch is much
  more structured than those options. Plus, a high
  quality mulch is also decorative! It can add a
  lot of wow to your garden beds, setting off the
  plants and flowers beautifully!

4
What Kinds Of Mulch Can You Get?

• Recycled wood mulch - Most high quality mulch is
  made from recycled wood and natural food dyes,
  making it safe to use around kids and pets. Mulch
  comes in red, brown and black, adding elegant
  contrast in your garden! (Bonus! If you live in
  Mississauga, you can have a load of mulch
  delivered to you with Garden Bag to help you get
  your autumn mulching underway!)

5

• Hemp mulch - Similar to recycled wood mulch,
  hemp mulch offers excellent soil protection from
  extreme heat or cold, maintaining constant
  temperatures. Its also pH neutral and
  biodegradable.

6

• Avoid mulches made from cocoa bean by-products,
  if you have pets. They have a chocolate odour
  that attracts your pets but as we all know,
  chocolate is toxic to them. Dogs dont produce
  the necessary enzymes to process theobromine and
  caffeine, both of which can be found in cocoa
  bean.

7
Why Your Garden Loves Mulch?

• Mulch is a warm blanket that protects your
  garden through the harshest winter conditions. It
  creates a barrier between your soil and the snow
  and ice. Think of it like insulation for your
  garden beds and perennials, shrubs and bulbs!

8

• The insulation factor works both ways too! As
  much as it keeps the cold out, it will keep the
  moisture and nutrients locked in your soil.
  Instead of losing your soils moisture to
  evaporation-dew, for example, is the result of
  moisture being drawn from the soil, not the
  air-mulch keeps it contained, so that plant and
  tree roots are happy and well fed in the moist
  earth.

9

• Mulch also helps to prevent soil erosion from
  spring melts, or soil compaction from heavy
  rains, two factors which make keeping garden beds
  well fed and plant roots well protected easier!

10

• Finally, mulch provides a natural barrier
  against weeds. Studies have shown that well
  placed mulch can drop weed growth to as low as
  7.5 weeds per 110 square feet of garden space.
  Youll notice that city run gardens will often
  have mulch in their garden beds and part of the
  reason is that it cuts down on the manual process
  of weeding these gardens. Thats a significant
  cost savings!

11

• For you as a homeowner, not having to weed your
  garden as much will not save you a lot of money
  but it will save you a lot of time and your back,
  in the bargain! You can spend more time enjoying
  your beautiful garden instead of being on your
  knees, pulling weeds!

12
How Do You Apply Mulch To Your Garden?

• First off, order it in your favourite colour
  and get free delivery from Garden Bag, in the
  Mississauga area!
• All you have to do is set aside a nice autumn
  afternoon to start spreading it at the base of
  all your shrubs, perennial plants, trees and on
  open garden beds. You want to pile up a good 2
  4 inches of mulch under each plant / tree / shrub
  and across any open soil areas, to ensure a good
  coverage.

13

• As youre planning your autumn planting and
  garden prep for winter, plan to add a little
  mulch! Your plants will thank you and you can
  enjoy a robust, lush garden again in the spring!