I love mulch! It’s a great way of getting great gardening results and is less effort than you’d imagine.
Hoeing is a way of creating a dust mulch.
I was hoeing between the garlic at the community garden last night creating a mulch of dust. The weather has been strange this year already even though it’s only April. With a spell of very wet weather and then some warm weather the soil appears to be cracking in places. This is in beds without a lot of organic matter in. Mulching the surface of soil can help protect it from the various weather conditions that cause the soil to be dried out or crack. It can protect it from the wind drying out the soil, and from excess rain.

Whatever you use as mulch ideally it will be free! Everyone loves a freebie and so people want to look at using whatever you can get your hands on. Grass cuttings should start being available as soon as you mow the lawn. I know some people are keen to keep grass clippings on the lawn to mulch that, but for anyone who grows vegetables it’s a great way of making the the soil safe and protected. It can be good for mulching thinly around onions, over potatoes, as well as a layer in the compost heap to get things really going.

Mulching can make your garden area look neat and tidy too. More public areas may need bark chippings, as many people will frown at the grass clippings fading on the borders.

If you’d like more information about mulching, the different types of mulch, then have a look at this ebook I’ve written.

The Joy Of Mulch