As we welcome springtime, we say hello to plants, flowers, and grass that go dormant in the winter. When the warmer months hit, ensuring you take care of all your landscaping needs is important. One way to promise a clean and healthy landscape is by treating the plants and flowers within your garden. When feeding your plants with soil, you’ll need to mulch to keep your garden healthy. Here are five benefits to mulching in the spring. 

Mulching is the practice of using natural garden waste as nutrients for your soil. Usually, gardeners will add a loose layer of shredded plant material; it helps save time, money, and effort within your landscaping and gardening process. 

There are several different types of mulch to choose from: grass clippings, compost, gravel, straw, shredded wood, cocoa bean shells, hazelnut shells, pine needles, mushroom compost, stone, and many others.

While plant roots grow deep in the soil, mulch is added as a top layer to the plant. While they share different properties and responsibilities, mulch helps enrich the soil. 

Wood mulches and ones made from organic materials will help the soil as it breaks down. Insects that live in the soil will consume the mulch over time, which later adds products back into the soil once these organisms die.  

When soil is patted down on flowers or plants, it prevents any kind of weed from growing from the roots. You can add about three to four inches of mulch to help make sure there’s no open space for these weeds to build. However, if weeds somehow pop up during this process, the mulch will make it easier for you to spot and remove them. 

If you’re worried about your plants or flowers getting too warm and drying out from the heat, mulch will help solve those anxieties. Mulch has properties that cause it to act as an insulator. This will help regulate the soil temperature so your plants will stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer.  

Mulch can retain water, so you won’t have to water your garden as much. When you first add water to your soil, the mulch will start a slow moisture process. This will help you save time and money wasted on watering your garden every day. We recommend adding a drip irrigation system or soaker hose to help water your plants and flowers. 

While water is necessary to help your garden grow, it can also cause your soil to wash away. Mulch will act as a defense mechanism against water and other elements of nature including rough weather like rain, snow, wind, and more.

As springtime approaches, it’s important to take care of your garden, so that you don’t face issues in the future. By mulching your garden, you can improve the soil, prevent weeds from growing, insulate your plants, retain water, and prevent erosion.