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Hey fellow gardener. In most of the country, people are in the throes of spring right now, rushing to get their beds amended and crops planted. However, if you live in the low desert of Arizona like I do, it is practically summer. With temperatures already reaching 100 ℉ and no break in sight, it’s time to think about how to protect our plants from this heat. I want to share with you one of the most useful garden practices in my experience, mulching!
What is mulching?
Mulching is the practice of spreading mulch throughout your garden. Useful definition right? Just kidding. Let me define mulch. According to the USDA mulch is “simply a protective layer of a material that is spread on top of the soil (“Mulch, n.d.). The key words here are “protective layer.” There are many methods of mulching and countless materials that can be used, but the intent of mulching is to protect your soil and the life within it.

Benefits of mulching
Mulching is an incredibly beneficial practice to use in your gardens for countless reasons. However, think the most common reason people use mulch is to suppress weed growth. Plants need light to grow, so as weed seeds are sprouting underneath your mulch, they are struggling to get the sunlight they need to survive. The majority of weeds will not make it up through the mulch towards the sunlight before dying. Although this is a valid reason to use mulch, I want to share other benefits as well. I will only be giving a brief overview, but if you want to learn more, be sure to check out the resources at the bottom of this post.
Mulching has many benefits for your soil health including increasing water retention, reducing runoff and erosion, and protecting your soil and the microbes within it from the sun. It also helps keep your soil cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter, allowing your plants to thrive for longer. Lastly, all organic sources of mulch will help feed your soil with nutrients as they break down.
What should I mulch with?
As I just mentioned, there are many different materials that can be used as mulch. I am going both organic and inorganic forms of mulch, but I recommend organic mulch because it will break down and add nutrients back to your soil. However, there are inorganic mulch options like rubber or plastic that can be used. This is not an completely inclussive list of all mulch options; instead, it shares the pros and cons of some of the most popular mulch options. Let’s jump into it!
Organic Mulch Options
Wood chips
Pros
- Adds nutrients back to soil
- Can often be obtained for free
- Try chipdrop.com or ask a local arborist. They will more than likely say yes because as a business they have to pay to dispose of their wood chips.
- Long lasting
Cons
- As they decompose they draw nitrogen from the soil around them. This should only affect about the top inch of soil, but be careful not to mix the wood chips into your soil.
Best Uses
This section is meant to help you understand how different types of mulches are commonly used. However, this absolutely does not mean that you have to stick to this. Gardening is very personalized, so do what works best for you!
- Pathways
- Orchards
- Perennial gardens
Hay
Pros
- Add nutrients back into soil
- Light and easy to use
- Does not draw nitrogen from the soil
Cons
- Will contain grass seeds that will sprout in your garden. This may seem counter productive, but weeds in your mulch will be much more shallow rooted than weeds growing in your soil.
- Must weed on a regular basis
Best Uses
- Annual gardens
- Containers

Straw
Pros
- Light and easy to use
- Does not draw nitrogen from the soil
- Little to no weeds
Cons
- Straw has less nutrients in it than wood chips, hay, straw, and compost. It is simply the empty stock of hay crops.
Best Uses
- Annual gardens
- Containers
Leaves
Pros
- Adds nutrients back to the soil
- Light and easy to use
- Free
Cons
- Very large leaves can become matted down and clump together. Avoid this by shredding large leaves before adding them to your garden
- Break down quickly, you will have to reapply more often
- Depending on where you live, they may be hard to find (hello fellow desert dwellers!)
Best Uses
- Annual Gardens
- Containers

Cardboard
Pros
- Free
- Makes soil dark, preventing weed and grass seeds from growing
Cons
- Best used in conjunction with another type of mulch. This is called sheet mulching. For example, you could lay down cardboard then top it with wood chips. This is an added layer to prevent weed growth.
- Must be mindful to avoid adding cardboard with large amounts of dyes or glue into your garden
- Does not add nutrients
Best Uses
- Walkways
- Establishing a new no dig space
- Perennial gardens
- In-ground gardening
Compost
Pros
- Adds lots of nutrients to your garden
Cons
- Will not be effective at keeping soil moist in hot climates, especially those with little to no rain
- Will not choke out weeds
Best Uses
- Any type of growing space
- In cooler climates with frequent rains
Chop and Drop
This method is to simply “chop and drop” your plants into your garden beds once they are spent and let them compost in the garden bed.
Pros
- Free
- Creates are circular system in your garden
- Add nutrients back to the soil
- Easy
Cons
- May not be enough to cover your whole garden space
- Must be careful not to use diseased plants
- You could unintentionally add lots of seeds into your soil if the plant you are chopping and dropping currently has seeds on it
Best Uses
This method can be used anywhere with anything. As mentioned above, do not use diseased plants. Additionally, you may need to cut the plants into small pieces depending on what it is. Keep in mind that wood will take much longer to decompose than leaves.

Inorganic Mulch Options
Rubber
Rubber mulch is oftentimes recycled tires or other rubber products that have been turned into pellets.
Pros
- Does not break down for a very long time
- Uses recycled materials
Cons
- Pricey
- When it does breakdown, it is releasing microplastics into your soil
- Does not add nutrients back into the soil
- Very hard to remove due to it being a bunch of small pieces
- Oftentimes they are black, which can get very hot and cause your plants to struggle depending on your climate
Best Uses
- I have no idea. I would not use this product in my garden ever.
Plastic
Plastic sheets often referred to as plastic mulch, weed fabric, or landscaping fabric are laid over garden rows. Growers then burn holes in the fabric where they want to place a plant so that it can access the soil to grow.
Pros
- Very effective at preventing weed growth
- Low maintenance
- Keeps soil warm
Cons
- Pricey
- Burnt holes are permanent, so you are stuck with that spacing in the future unless you get new fabric
- Does not add nutrients back into the soil
- Will add microplastics to the soil as it breaks down and degrades
Best Uses
- Anywhere! I have seen it used in the following ways:
- In ground beds
- In walkways
- In high tunnels
- In raised beds
- In perennial spaces
How do I Mulch?
This is about as easy as it gets. Simply spread the mulch across your garden! It should be about 3 inches deep. If you live in a place with extreme weather like me, you can add even more mulch, up to 6 inches deep. Beware, I have heard from multiple sources that mulching too thick can prevent oxygen from reaching the soil. I have personally never experienced this, and in a climate where summer temperatures surpass 115 ℉, I believe that the dryness and heat are much more likely to negatively impact my plants than too much mulch. I don’t worry about going too thick with the mulch, but you may have a different experience in your climate!
When you are transplanting or sowing seeds, simply move the mulch to the side. If you are sowing seeds, do not put the mulch back until the seed has sprouted and is getting established. If you transplanted seedlings, you can put the mulch back on immediately.

Tip!
If you have an issue with birds rearranging your mulch for you and smothering your seeds and seedlings, then you can use clear plastic cups to protect your plants! Simply cut the bottom off the cup and place it upside down over your seedling/ seed. Now your plant is protected from being covered (or eaten) by birds!

Further Resources
If you want to dive in and learn even more check out these resources! You can also see if your local agricultural extension office or university has any information more specific to where you live!
https://www.usda.gov/peoples-garden/soil-health/mulch
https://www.epicgardening.com/soil-building/mulch/
https://www.almanac.com/types-mulch-advantages-and-disadvantages-mulching
https://www.homesandgardens.com/gardens/mulching
https://extension.arizona.edu/sites/extension.arizona.edu/files/attachment/mulchmaterials1.pdf
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