Tips For Spreading Mulch

Mulching is a good garden maintenance task that comes with a lot of benefits. In addition to helping keep your plants healthy and weed free, mulching can add to your yard’s aesthetic appeal.

But it’s important to do it correctly. Doing it wrong can lead to problems with rot and pests. To avoid these issues, here are some tips for spreading mulch the right way:

Make a Plan

Mulching is a great way to keep your yard looking neat and clean. It also provides your landscape plants with a healthy dose of organic matter, which improves soil quality and promotes growth.

Before spreading mulch, it’s important to make a plan for how much you want to use. A good rule of thumb is to multiply the square footage of your area by the number of inches you’re using.

Divide that number by 12 to determine the amount of bags or scoops you need for your project. It’s easy to do with the The Home Depot mulch and top soil calculator.

To prevent weeds from growing under your mulch, fully weed your garden bed first. This will help ensure you get rid of any weeds that may have come up from previous seasons.

Prepare the Area

Mulching a landscape is an essential part of maintaining healthy plants. However, it requires some preparation to make the process smooth and successful.

Before spreading mulch, you need to clean out the area and remove old mulch, debris, and weeds. This will make the job easier.

You also need to rake the garden bed to remove any leaves, sticks or seeds. This will ensure that the mulch you apply is smooth and level.

A rake with short tines is ideal for this task, but you can also use your hands for an even smoother finish.

Then, prepare a wheelbarrow and shovel or pitchfork to load the mulch. Place small mounds of mulch around the space you are working with, and smooth it out evenly to a depth of 2- to 4-inches.

Finally, leave a small gap between the mulch and the base of trees and shrubs to prevent root rot or disease. This will allow air and water to circulate freely, preventing a buildup of fungus or mould that can kill the plants.

Spreading the Mulch

Spreading mulch is an easy way to improve the look of your garden, while also providing a weed-suppressing barrier. But it’s important to spread the mulch properly to maximize the benefits, so you don’t end up with rotting plants or weeds growing through the layers.

Before spreading your mulch, rake the bed to remove leaves, sticks, and other debris. This will help the mulch smother weeds, as well as create a better soil layer for planting.

Spray the bed with a weed killer 1 to 2 weeks before you spread your mulch to ensure that weeds have died. This will make the process easier and more effective.

Mulch should be spread 2-4 inches deep, which is enough to provide the benefit of weed protection while allowing water and air to reach your plants’ roots. If it is spread more than this, it will prevent moisture from getting to the ground and may bury the base of your plants.

Clean Up

Mulching is a great way to keep your lawn and garden beds looking good all year round. It helps protect the roots of your plants from weeds and cold weather, prevents erosion and adds color to the landscape.

Once you’ve spread the mulch, it’s important to clean up the area where it was placed. You should clear away dried up leaves, sticks and old mulch from previous years.

A rake or leaf rake is a good tool for this job. Make sure that your rake has shorter tines, as they are better at breaking up mulch and spreading it out evenly.

It’s also a good idea to spray all weeds with weed killer at least one week before mulching. This allows the weeds to completely die, making them easier to remove with a weeding tool.