Will the best mulch please stand up
Foundational to plant health care is healthy roots and healthy soil ecology. Surprisingly, many of the mulches we have been using in our landscapes are not as wonderful as we think. Very finely ground mulches can become impermeable to water and oxygen passage, smothering root systems. In general, mulches which are coarser are better than mulches which are very fine.
According to Professor Linda Chalker Scott, “In areas where trees are a dominant feature of the landscape, arborist wood chips are one of the best mulch choices for trees and shrubs. Studies have found wood chips to be one of the best performers in terms of moisture retention, temperature moderation, weed control, and sustainability. In many urban areas, arborist wood chips are available free of charge, making them one of the most economically practical choices.”
“Unlike uniformly textured sawdust and bark mulches arborist wood chips include bark, wood, and often leaves. The chemical and physical diversity of these materials resists the compaction often found in sawdust and bark mulches. Additionally, the materials vary in their size and decomposition rate, creating a more diverse environment that houses a diversity of microbes, insects and other organisms. A biologically diverse soil community is more resistant to environmental disturbance and will in turn support a diverse and healthy plant population.”
