It's interesting how little everyday things can make a big difference in a garden.
Gardeners faithfully and patiently perform a few simple tasks over and over again because they are essential to their success. Most are simple and easy to understand, with countless variations and approaches, but to most veteran gardeners they are so commonplace they are boring to talk about.
Please note that I am writing here not about the one-time tasks of preparing a garden in the first place, but about the recurring tasks, such as choosing a good potting soil, digging a big hole in the soil, loosening the roots of your plants, choosing plants that do well in sun or shade, fencing off deer, planting seasonal flowers, vegetables, and herbs each spring and fall, etc.
It's one of the most tedious of the regular tasks of gardening, in the same category as watering, mowing, pruning, weeding, composting, fertilizing, pest control, etc. There are different approaches and philosophies to each, each worthy of polite discussion, but which can also lead to heated arguments.
What's my job? I asked Ira, a military man's son who is deployed overseas until the fall, what I could do to help his yard look nice for his wife and neighbors until he gets home. I'd already done some weeding and pruning, and taken the rare opportunity to create a small fenced-in flower bed for his 3-year-old daughter to plant in. But all he asked me to do was mulch the flower bed in front of the house.
Yes, just mulch. A simple blanket of bark and a little soil cover. I mulch everything, including my potted plants, so this is fine. The reasons are that, depending on the material, mulch reduces soil compaction and erosion, keeps the soil cool and moist in the summer (preventing the sun from “evaporating” it), protects the roots from sudden changes in soil temperature in the winter, reduces weeds from seeding, and provides a colorful uniformity for a neat look. Plus, my favorite mulches, leaves and bark, slowly break down to provide food for earthworms and shelter for beneficial insects.
You can use just about anything that will cover the soil and allow air and water to infiltrate. Common materials include leaves, bark, shredded wood, hay, and pine needles, all of which will gradually break down and improve the soil. There are also inorganic gravel, crushed limestone or slate, stones, and rubber mulches shaped like bark, which work physically but don't do anything to improve the soil. I've also used Mardi Gras beads, pecan shells, pine cones, and pulled weeds.
Some people use “dust mulch” by lightly digging up the soil around the plants with a hoe, but not enough to damage the plant's roots. This is effective, but should be repeated after every rain.
Incidentally, I never use plastic or weed barriers except under slate sidewalks. They prevent water penetration, inhibit important earthworm activity, and are almost always a pain. And in the long run, weeds usually grow through them.
Whatever you choose, my rule of thumb for how much to use is just enough to completely cover the soil surface, plus a little more for settling. You'll need 3 to 4 inches of pine needles and 1 to 2 inches of bark.
So last week my partner and I spent an hour weeding and mulching our garden and our son's garden in preparation for the British summer. The bark reduces weeds, provides food for soil-building earthworms and makes the garden look better.
So, “Yes, Major Ira!” I'll do anything for you and your neighbors.
Felder Rushing is a Mississippi author, columnist and host of “Gestalt Gardener” on MPB Think Radio. Email your gardening questions to rushingfelder@yahoo.com.
