Easy gardening tips

A lot of people wander what the use of mulch is. After al, it's something you put down and after a while it just dissapears into the soil, right?

Well, here in Southern Florida, mostly all of our soil is... plain sand, in the best case mixed up with building debris. Imagine being a plant and having to live off of that... Not very yummy, right?

So, reason number one: it actually feeds the ground. Anything organic put into the ground will feed it.

Reason number two: With the current drought going on (and believe me, for the years to come it's not going to get better) you want to keep the maximum of humidity into the ground. After a rainshower, the wind will litteraly suck out all the water from the ground (remember, we live on the sand here) and leave your plants and flowers grasping for humidity. A nice cover of Mulch will prevent that and keep the moisture in the soil.

Reason number three: It's purely esthetical, but most people prefer the sight of mulch to barren earth.

What kind of mulch to use?

Most kinds of mulch being used are: Red mulch, Cypress mulch and Pine bark mulch. PErsonally I prefer the Cedar mulch because it looks A. More natural B. It's supposed to be Cedar wood

Pine bark mulch is also being used, but due to it's nature is more acid (read: higher PH level) and some plants don't like too much acidity.

Red mulch is basically a bag of surprises: it can be any kind of wood (mostly wood being used for industrial purposes such as pallets) that's being chipped into pieces and then dyed red. Personally I have found pieces of fruitcrates (with the printing still legible) and oil stained bits in red mulch. I know it's the fashion of the moment but basically what you're putting into your soil is red stain and whatever industrial waste. Even some cases of flee infested mulch have been reported... So, if you have pets, definitively stay away from red mulch!

When to put down mulch:

I'd say any time you find a good deal on mulch at your local store, or anytime you see your mulch is about to dissapear due to mnatural facts.

Where to put down mulch:

Anywhere you either don't have grass or groundcovering plants. Beware: in flowerbeds, stay away about one inch from the plant's stem, as filling it up too high might cause rottening or disease forming on the stem/trunk of the plant.