Gardening Tips: Rubber Vs. Wood Mulch

Deciding on the type of mulch to use for your garden has a lot to do with the landscaping of your house and the type of soil and plants you have. For many gardeners deciding between rubber and wood mulch is an easy choice once they know what they want for their personal gardens, as well as what their garden requires on a daily basis.

Mulch, regardless of the type, offers several basic things for your garden, some of which are cosmetic, but also for beneficial reasons. One of the most basic reasons for adding mulch to your garden is for protection. Mulch gives your garden the ability to retain water to avoid the soil from drying out as quick as it would without a ground cover under full sun. This in turn helps lower water loss from the plant and lowers your water bill.

Both rubber and organic wood mulch though, are able to provide an extra layer of protection from weeds an foreign plants so that you can cut down on the time it takes to maintain the garden. In addition to cutting down on the number of weeds you have in your garden, they can also help reduce the types and number of pests you may have to deal with. These are just a couple of the reasons gardeners choose to use mulch in their garden.

Once the decision to add mulch has been made, a gardener must then decide on what type of mulch to use depending on what their garden needs. Most mulches are able to give your garden the added benefits of added nutrients being replaced in the soil, but then you would have to choose an organic mulch. Organic mulch is that which is composed of natural, organic material that breaks down into the soil with time, including wood, leaves, straw and newspaper. Inorganic mulch, such as rubber, glass and plastics do not break down and return to the soil.

The following information offers the pros and cons of both rubber and wood mulch and what would work best for each landscaping or garden situation.

Pros and Cons of Rubber Mulch

Rubber mulch provides many of the same benefits as other organic mulches, but it's main setback is that it is in fact, inorganic. On the plus side, rubber mulch stays where it is put mainly because it does not disintegrate at all. For this reason, rubber based mulch is most often used by large companies with vast grounds that need to be maintained. It is also a favorite of gardeners who like to add color or creative designs into their landscaping.

Like other mulch choices, rubber mulch is able to retain moisture in the ground keeping plants cool through hot summer days and conserving water that might otherwise be lost to evaporation. Weeds and other plant growth is able to be maintained by a nice thick layer of mulch spread over extra garden space, which keeps your garden time to a minimum. This and novelty reasons are all pros of using rubber mulch vs. wood mulch in your garden.

One of the most argued reasons gardeners choose not to use inorganic mulches such as rubber is because they offer no natural benefits to the soil. Rubber is not able to disintegrate with time and replenish the soil with nutrients that will leach into the ground and provide roots with benefits. In fact, several people worry about residue and toxins that are sometimes contained in different rubbers leaching out of the rubber and entering the soil and the water that will eventually feed a garden.

Other cons related to using rubber as a garden mulch have to do with cosmetic and design reasons. It is a lot easier to purchase mulch exactly the way you want it when it is a synthetic product because it can be made to order in some cases. This type of cosmetic mulch is used in gardens which are meant for public display or show design gardens and work well because several colors and types of mulch molds can be used.

Pros and Cons of Wood Mulch

For the most part gardeners prefer wood mulch, and those gardeners that are dedicated to growing organic have the several different types of wood mulch as a choice. Wood mulch is known as an organic mulch, but it does not replenish the soil as fast as other organic mulches could. Instead it is a slow process as wood mulch slowly degrades and provides the soil with a slow, but steady supply of nutrients. In order for this to happen, the mulch must remain in place and be as undisturbed as possible, the type of wood mulch used also changes the time of degradation.

Wood mulches perform well in almost any garden and with all the different varieties that are readily available in garden centers, there is a choice for every garden. As a landscaping choice, the different types and cuts of the mulch make it a good friend of landscapers because they are able to spread it easily and create a uniform look for cheap. In general, mulch is a friend to plants and the soil because it serves as a natural barrier to some types of pests that would otherwise find it easy to infect some plants. Water loss is kept to a minimum with the layer and the ground is kept cooler as a result.

Some of the more obvious cons to using wood mulch include the possible risks that always come when adding natural items to your garden. It is best to check where the wood comes from to be sure that you are not introducing any pests or new fungus to your yard. Many times wood mulch is used where it is not needed and it does its job too well, retaining water around plants that need well drained soil to flourish. And finally, while mulch is a great way to keep away certain pests that infest some plants, it can also be the perfect breeding ground for other insects so make sure you know what you are planting and what kind of care those plants need.

Rubber vs. Wood Mulch

Each type of mulch has its own attributes, but wood mulch offers the same benefits as rubber mulch while being eco-friendly at the same time. I prefer to only add those things to my garden that will be sustainable and are natural to the earth. In this case, wood mulch can provide for your garden both aesthetically and beneficially so it is the better choice of the two.