A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2006 Mulch

We planted our veggie garden and were wondering what the best mulch would be to keep the moisture in and weeds out.

Thanks
Victoria

this my first year gardening, but i'm using plain cedar bark mulch. (not colored of course). Everyone here told me though to keep the mulch AWAY from teh stalk of whatever plant by 1-2". I have no problems yet going on 3 weeks in the ground

At the end of the year will you just till the mulch into the ground? We have some cedar bark mulch so that might be what we go with then.

Thanks
Victoria

Im using dried grass clippings, mixed with some shredded leaves. Seems to work pretty well, and it's FREE!

no dont think i'll be tilling them in the ground. they would take too long to decompose i think. the ONLY reason i was using cedar bark mulch is due to the fact that its odor is said to keep away insects. so i thaught that would be a good natural way to keep some bugs outa my food!

Here`s what I do. After the season is over I first mulch the dead stuff into a pile and I also have a temp burn pile for the leaves\grass\small branches\twigs which my trees shed often. In spring I till all this leftover in the soil and there you go. I also get chicken manure from my brother in law.

Stinks but works great. Smell goes away after a few days.

I normally use grass clippings. This year I will also be using straw.

That's what we use, about 4" of straw around all the plants and then we till it in at the end of the season. It's not a 100% weed-suppressor, but it works very well and keeps the paths dry so the slugs aren't an issue, plus it retains water, so really a win-win-win situation. Can't beat that!

Cheers,
Julianna