Mulch A Basic Idea for The Beginners

In my past blogs I kept mentioning about Mulches. I know many of the gardeners are  totally aware of this term, but I can feel the confusion a beginner will face while others keep mentioning about mulching. So I have decided to demystify the whole term and make the word much more easy to understand and most importantly easy to apply.

Technically mulch refers to a layer of organic or inorganic material which is applied to the surface of any soil. The word mulch is very catchy and we can see a variety of things like straw, grass crippling, leaves are being used. Sometimes recycled rubbers or plastic sheets are also been used as mulch. Though there are variety of materials used in mulching the basic purpose more or less remains the same. 

1. Applying mulch can help the soil to retain its moisture. This are particularly helpful in dry climate like a summer season.
2. A considerable amount of mulch make a thick layer on the soil and make the air almost impossible to reach the soil layer. This principle is used in controlling weeds. Weeds die with the lack of oxygen.
3. In case you are using organic matters for mulching this in later stages decomposes and mixes with the soil thus helps in increasing the nutrient content of the soil. If applied properly it can increase the soil productivity many folds.
4. It also keeps the soil temperature fixed and not fluctuate according to the climate temperature. Thus leaving lesser stress on the plant to adopt to the outer climate.

There are two ways you can apply mulch. You can add the mulch directly to the soil or you can apply mulch around the existing plant. As per the content mulch can be of two types: Organic Mulch and Inorganic Mulch.

Organic Mulch:

When you use material such as leaves, straw, grass crippling, wood chips etc the mulch is called organic mulch. The best part of using organic mulch is that it decomposes slowly and release nutrient into the soil. It encourages earthworm activities and keep the weed seeds from germinating. Just remember two basic formula. Lay down the mulch where there are weeds already. And secondly make sure the layer is thick enough to prevent new weeds from coming up. A general recommendation is to apply a layer of 4-6 inches of mulch in the most weeded areas and 2-3 inches in case the area is shady and not much of weed is present. One word of caution is that organic mulch is generally acidic in nature. So add little bit of lime with the mulch to neutralize its acidic impact, in case the plant is more comfortable in neutral of slightly alkaline soil.

Inorganic Mulch:

Inorganic mulching product can include plastic sheets, rubber chips etc. I personally do not recommend any inorganic substance to use in mulch due to its negative impact on the environment. But in some cases you can use it if you are not that much comfortable using organic mulches. Applying a plastic sheet as a mulch can prevent the water for entering to soil from outside also. So in case you are having drip watering system which is embedded before applying the plastic sheets it can be used.

The best way to use the mulch is to keep the base of the plant mulch-free. It will help the plant to breath freely. If you are using cedar chips and other aesthetically superior products just stay away from coloring. Normal colors contains chemicals which can dampen the whole purpose of doing organic gardening.

Just keep one thing in mind whatever is your material and whatever is your reason, try to apply mulch. It is easy and it will make your garden look very beautiful and professional.

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Difference between Compost and Mulch

In the past we have discussed about Compost and Mulch separately. But sometimes people get confused over the two. So in this article we are trying to give you some comparison so that the concepts never get mixed.

Compost:

Compost is called gardeners gold. For preparing you need to mix different ingredientstogether in proper ratio. Which are then left for decomposition.

Many plants have particular requirement of nutrients. You should keep this in mind while preparing your compost. They are mixed in particular ratio to get the ultimate nutrient mixture for the plant.

The main function of compost is to fertilize the soil. You can use the compost by mixing with the garden soil or with the potting mix (in case of container gardening).

For a good compost it is essential that the ingredients are decomposed properly and should not be smelly like manure. Some people add water with the compost to make compost tea which is then added to the soil for enrichment.

Mulch:

Mulch on the other hand is used to create a barrier between the soil and the environment. It works as a protective cover for the soil. It increases the soil temperature during those cold winter seasons and helps to prevent excess heat to reach the soil during hot summers.

Mulch helps in keeping the moisture level of the soil intact. You would have less wastage of water and certainly less frequent watering schedule.

It works as some kind of a blanket and thus used to keep weeds away.

It differs from compost over the fact that it doesnt require any particular ratio and combinations of ingredients to work. It doesnt need to get those ingredients composted before using.

Though it is better to use organic matters as mulch it is not compulsory and sometimes other materials like plastic etc are also used.

Mulch can increase the nutrients of the soil in the longer run if prepared from organic materials but that is not its fundamental feature. It is more concerned with preserving water and working as an insulator.

All compost can be used as mulch but not the other way around. Both serve particular functions in gardening and they both can be used as soil conditioner. Though it would be foolish to use a nutrient-dense material like compost as a protective coating and not enriching the soil.

Compost and mulch are two age-old concept of gardening that improves the soil quality tremendously. If used properly, these two concept can change your garden soil from unproductive sterile one to a growing heaven.

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