A Mulch Convert

Mulched gardens look unnatural. Country homes in rural settings should boast untreated, realistic gardens. That was how I felt about using mulch at our farm house. In the middle of a field with a back drop of tall hardwood trees and rolling hills, the house front gardens needed to match, you know - decorum. Inorganic mulch like marble or brick chips are sterile, cedar or pine mulch were just too neat and the old fashioned newspaper and grass clippings, in our yard, bred earwigs (a.k.a. pincher bugs). The alternative, of course, is weeds. After years of holding out we've converted to bark mulch and would never turn back.

Spring clean up - a series of weekends spent with rakes and gloves hauling wheelbarrows full of weeds and sticks and clumps of grass; please let's forget about the once frozen dog piles. Edging the flower beds and making way for new perennial growth is a rite of spring. Once the destructive work is done and all the misfit plants are cast out it is time to plant for the new season.

Annuals are laid out against an established bed of budding perennials. The dirt is dark and rich looking like freshly ground coffee. Contrasting colors dazzle the eye as bright colors dance in the groomed loamy bed. For years we resisted bark mulch because we were old fashioned farmers who believed everything must serve its purpose and the dirt alone was responsible for plant growth. Besides, weren't the claims of bark mulch really marketing fodder? Tired of weeding gardens that only looked nice two weeks out of the summer growing season, we relented and tried bark mulch for last spring. Like Pinot and Pomegranates, once having tried it we readily admit the error of our ways and have converted to the regular use of garden mulch.

To prevent the artificial affect we had so wanted to avoid we varied the depth of the mulch slightly, 2 - 4 inches, enough to maintain moisture and discourage weeds while creating a non-uniform surface. In fact, we re-designed the front of the house into smaller, irregular shaped gardens to create puddles of mosaic color- very cool.

After spreading the entire load of bark mulch, about one square yard, we sipped lemonade and reviewed our work. Of course, the real pleasure came later with the time not spent yanking persistent weeds from between and underneath geraniums, holy-hocks and peonies. The bright blossoms and green leaves remained cleaner from the lack of dirty rain splatter followed by a snowy winter to compost some of the dark, organic mulch into nutritious soil for next springs' beginning.

There are many mulch styles to choose from: bark mulch, inorganic mulch and even grass roots mulch (well, actually grass blades and newspaper). This spring, after raking the garden shovel in some mulch and later, when the plants display for you, enjoy the show without the detraction of overzealous weeds.