Mulching: What, Why, When?
One of the most impressive sights to see in winter is a weed free, well-tended border that’s nicely cultivated and mulched. How we prepare our borders in the winter is often the deciding factor of how well the summer will go. Much of the work in a border is best done in winter months, leaving only staking, weeding and dead heading for the summer (and perhaps watering in other parts of the country). Mulching is a really important part of the garden calendar – it can be hugely beneficial, but in some cases can cause problems. We’ll get into that later… First of all, let’s tackle what mulch actually is, although quite frankly this is always up for debate. In my view, it’s something you put on top of the soil to suppress weeds and/or improve soil quality. Gravels and aggregates can be used as weed suppressants, but it’s more common to use organic matter (AKA, compost). Parterre bedding since mulching So, what do mulches do? Well, that depends on the type. Gravels and aggregates merely supp
