Mulching is often a necessary part of landscaping and gardening. Mulching can improve the appearance of planting areas as well as improve the health of the plants that grow there. Although there are a lot of DIY projects you can handle yourself out in your yard, mulching is one type of project that's best left to the professionals. According to The Family Handyman, organic mulch should be replenished every two to three years. Let's learn more about mulching and why you should hire a professional mulching service or supplier for your mulch needs.

Benefits of Mulching

It's good to be aware of why you do the things you do out in your garden and property. So, let's look at a few benefits of mulching. First, mulching helps maintain the proper amount of moisture in the soil. You want to slow the evaporation process to some degree so that your plants have time to get all of the benefits of the water you're giving them. Mulching also slows down the germination process of weeds. This can help cut down on how much weeding you wind up needing to do.

Another benefit of mulch is that it can act as insulation for your plants. During the summer the mulch will help to keep the soil cooler and during the winter it can keep the soil warmer. You can also improve the aeration of the soil when you mulch and this can greatly affect the health of your trees.

This gardening method will also cut down on the spread of diseases, as well as minimize salt build-up. Most homeowners also love the fact that mulch makes planting areas look neater and cleaner. To get the most benefits out of mulching, you should consider hiring a mulching service. Let's look at a few of the ways that a professional mulching service benefits you.

Professional Knowledge

When you hire a mulching service or local landscapers to handle mulching your property, you'll be getting the advantage of their industry expertise. If you aren't a landscaper yourself, then you might not have all of the same knowledge that these professionals will have. Professionals will come at your project with a different approach because they can assess your particular yard, plants, and the amount of sunlight or heat the property gets and make well-informed decisions on how to mulch it in the best way possible.

The Right Equipment

In addition to professional knowledge, they'll also have the right equipment for the job. Mulching can be a time-consuming and energy-consuming job if you're trying to do it on your own. A professional service will have the right equipment to make your mulching project a breeze.

Easy Clean Up

Mulching can also be a messy chore. If you're having old mulch removed from beds, this debris needs to be disposed of properly. Professional mulching services will be able to help you with this or advise you on where to take old mulch. When new mulch is added, it can also cause a mess in your yard as some debris will get scattered around. Your mulching pros will be sure to clean up any mess they make so that your yard is left looking better than ever.

Saves Time

You're already busy all throughout the week with work and family obligations. You don't want to spend your entire weekend hauling and spreading mulch. If you hire a service, you'll get this important task done on your property, while still getting to spend your free time the way you want. Before you invest in mulching, it's a good idea to get some info on best practices. Here are some mulching do's and don'ts that you should keep in mind.

Mulch as an Accent

Mulch isn't only a practical solution to gardening issues, it's also a beautiful way to accent your garden and planting areas. When you add mulch to a planting area, you can create neat, tidy borders on your property. Mulch comes in a variety of colors as well, so you can use the mulch to coordinate with other elements of your home's exterior such as your shutters or paint.

Consider Your Entire Landscape

You should use mulch as the filler in between plantings. You don't want to fill up huge areas with mulch only. You also want to avoid having a large area filled with mulch and then only a few plants scattered throughout. Look at the planting area first. If you want to add more plants or shrubs, great, but if you choose not to, then only add enough mulch to fill in around the current plants.

Clean Old Mulch Out

You should also remember that old mulch will need to be cleaned out. You shouldn't continue to add more and more mulch in a bed year after year without cleaning out the old mulch. This is important for your soil health.

Pay Attention to the Thickness

You will want to start thinning mulch out as you approach a pavement, stepping stones, or a tree trunk. You don't want a pile of mulch next to a tree trunk because it can cause rot. You should start tapering it down as you approach.

Try Different Mulch

You might want to try out some different types of mulch until you find the one that really suits your needs. If you've been using the same mulch for a while, don't be scared to try out a new look. There are lots of different types and colors of mulch available.

Don't Use Too Little or Too Much

This is where it's helpful to have a professional mulching service on hand. These professionals will know exactly how much mulch should be added to your landscape. Mulching often needs to be done about twice a year in our experience. When you mulch, it's important to use the right amount in order to fend off weeds and conserve the moisture in the soil.

Don't Forget About Your Trees

Mulch around the base of trees to give added protection. This can be especially important for young trees. The mulch ring can help to keep other plants from draining nutrients from the tree and it helps to protect the young tree from mowing as well.

Don't Assume You Need Plastic

Many homeowners simply assume they need plastic or geotextiles to go underneath their mulch. This doesn't always help though. This is another instance in which you need the expertise of professionals. They'll be able to advise you on what, if anything, needs to go under the mulch.

Don't Use Low Quality Mulch

As with most aspects of gardening and landscaping, the quality of the mulch matters. You want to always get mulch from a reliable source. If you get low-quality mulch, it could very well have weed seeds mixed in. This often happens if the mulch has been stored near a field that has weeds growing in it.

These are just a few things you should keep in mind when considering mulch for your property. If you're ready to invest in mulch, you need to hire professional mulching services and supplies. These professionals will help you make the most of this investment and ensure you get high-quality products. Call us at Red Bark Inc today!