Four Inorganic Mulches

While you don't have to mulch your plants, if you do you will have healthier plants and plants that are more resistant to drought and disease.

There are many reasons to use mulch. It keeps the soil moist by protecting it from the sun, it discourages weeds from growing, keeps vegetables off the ground and therefore cleaner, provides a nice environment for earthworms to live in, and gives you a way to use your grass clippings.

There are many different kinds of mulch, and they come in both organic and inorganic form. Organic mulch breaks down rather quickly in hot, humid climates, and will have to be replaced frequently.

If you don't want the work of having to replace your mulch often, try inorganic mulch.

Four types of inorganic mulches are as follows:

1. Landscape fabric. This also goes by the name of sheet mulch. To use, spread it out and anchor down the corners with pegs or rocks. Make two cross wise slits in the sheet with a knife to gain access to the ground so you can dig a planting hole. Landscape fabric has many tiny holes in it so water and air can get through. You can put fertilizer on top of the sheet and let the rain wash it down into the soil. Landscape fabric won't win any beauty prizes so put a topdressing (gravel, wood chips, bark chips, etc.) on top of it to make it more attractive.

2. Circular mulch mat. This is a circular mat with a planting hole in the middle and a slit from the middle to the edge. This makes it easy to slide the mat around a shrub or bush. Topdressing can be added to make it more decorative.

3. Black plastic. This is excellent for warming the soil and controlling weeds. The downside is that water and nutrients can't get through. Before laying down the plastic, put down one to two inches of compost or aged manure, and a seephose. And voila! Your watering and fertilizing problems are solved.

4. Gravel. Although some may argue gravel should be considered organic mulch, I included it here because it doesn't decompose like organic mulch does. Gravel is good mulch for plants that need drainage. It does an excellent job of keeping the soil cool in places that have a scorching hot sun. If you have a lot of slugs or snails in your garden, gravel can be an effective way to control them.

Whether you use inorganic or organic mulch in your vegetable garden, flower beds, or around your trees and scrubs, it can make your plants more attractive looking as well as making them healthier and more bountiful.