When's the best time to mulch? All year round, of course! Here are tips to help you maximize the benefits of mulch in any season.
The best time to mulch is right now! Mulch--any vegetable matter that you heap on top of your garden soil--offers so many advantages that there's never a bad time to avail yourself of them. Here are some seasonal tips to maximize the benefits of year-round mulching.
Mulching through the winter
Put your garden to bed with a thick layer of mulch. Ruth Stout, notorious champion of year-round mulch, recommended a good eight inches to start. Don't throw away or plow under the spent sprouts and stalks of your garden; just leave them where they lie. Ask your neighbors to think of you when raking up fallen leaves. Gather up as well any spoiled hay discarded by local farmers.
If you are concerned that the rotting mulch will leech nitrogen from your soil, you can replenish it with such natural additives as cottonseed meal, ocean kelp, salt hay, and even coffee grounds. Peanut shells are also chock-full of nitrogen, but because they have a tendency to carry blight, nematodes, and other ickies, it's best not to use them.
Don't worry that such a huge heap will overwhelm your plants next spring. By the time you're ready to plant, rain and snow and rot will have greatly reduced the volume of your mulch. Its nutrients will seep into your soil all winter long, attracting earthworms and priming your plot for a bountiful harvest next year.
Adding mulch in the spring
If you layered the mulch on thick last autumn, the resulting compacted mass will make it hard for weeds to get much of a start. If you see unwanted shoots pushing their way through, don't bother weeding; just dump fresh vegetable matter on top of the intruders.
Some gardeners report that hay and straw, which contain vast quantities of seeds, can actually accelerate weed growth. Ruth Stout always scoffed at this concern; she kept her mulch so thick that the tiny seeds never had a chance. If they manage to get started, hay sprouts are easy to pull up, not being anchored in the soil. You can also go out after a heavy rain and shrivel the stowaways with a little propane weeding torch.
To keep from impeding the progress of your intended crops, rake the compacted mulch back from your rows in advance of planting. This will also allow the sun to warm the soil so you can get an earlier start. When your plants are well established, push the mulch back up to the base of their stems.
Large seeds can be covered up with fresh vegetable matter immediately after planting. Corn and beans will push right through, and they'll appreciate the early protection from weeds and birds.
Mulch can also help you out when a late frost threatens. A layer of fresh, loose hay will insulate your tender new sprouts against the cold.
Mulching through a dry summer
Mulch will hold moisture against a drought, keeping your crop well watered all summer long. For extra help in a dry season, add new vegetable matter and spray it down thoroughly. Not only will this layer retain water like a sponge, it will protect your plants and soil from the baking rays of the sun.
Conversely, if the growing season shapes up to be a soggy one, you may wish to pile up your mulch away from your plants to avoid root rot. When the ground begins to dry up again, spread your mulch over the garden once more to keep the moisture from getting away.
