Permaculture: What Mulch For The Garden?

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Garden mulching

Swiss chard on straw bed.

What is mulching for?

The soil of the kitchen garden always needs to be protected from organic layer to better preserve its biological activity. It is a virtuous circle: the organic layer nourishes the plants by decomposing and improves the water retention (What to limit the watering throughout the year). The crops are stronger, in turn shading the soil by protecting it from the weather, and composting the waste in place. Little by little, the soil becomes richer and richer in humus and its productivity increases. But to get there, do not skimp.

It's not just straw

The image of the permaculture garden always gives the impression that the soil is covered with straw. This is possible if you have this material in abundance or for aesthetic reasons. But it is not obligatory. Many other materials can be used to cover the ground. The artificial mulches like the mulch cloths where the mulch minerals have no use. Indeed, they do not promote biological activity, unlike mulch that will decompose. Mix the materials on the floor is a good way to put all the chances on your side. By varying the mulch, as in a forest, no risk of creating an imbalance!

The cardboard for mulching

As long as it is not covered with a plasticized film, the corrugated cardboard can be used as mulch. Quickly laid, it is perfect for choking weeds. But he does not have only advantages. His contributions to the land are quite small. While home to useful animals such as toads, it also serves as a first class refuge for slugs. Avoid using it alone. Cover it with grass clippings for example.

Straw, not so simple

If it offers an aesthetic rendering and a pleasant smell, it will have to be found at a fodder dealer, because farmers only produce it in bales. 300 kg and more. And in 15 kg bales, it is very expensive. Limit its use to surface use, to hide the ugly mulch materials that truly cover the earth. The hay, which contains seeds, should be avoided.

Did you know?

In the forest, microbiological activity is present up to 2 m deep and even more, around tree roots. On the contrary, a garden soil sees its activity concentrated in the first 20 centimeters and very little below. Mulch is used to fight against this "sterility of the depths"!

Recovery mulches


The waste of size should not be thrown away if you can easily break them into small pieces or pass them to the shredder. Simply cut the stems into sections of 20 cm to make a mulch. Each load counts, even those of coniferous sizes. Small inputs make large mulches! And nothing prevents you to complete these heterogeneous mulches with the remains of cultures.

For further:

Gravel mulch

  • What mulch for which plant?
  • How to make a gravel mulch?
  • How to mulch fruits and vegetables?

Permaculture: What Mulch For The Garden?

FAQ - 💬

❓ What kind of mulch is best for gardens?

👉 8 best vegetable garden mulches

  1. Compost. Compost is perfect for vegetable gardeners because it both improves soil quality and structure and keeps roots safe and insulated. ...
  2. Grass clippings. Dry grass clippings are a favorite with thrifty, organic gardeners. ...
  3. Black plastic. ...
  4. Straw. ...
  5. Leaves. ...
  6. Pine needles. ...
  7. Cocoa hulls. ...
  8. Newspaper.

❓ What is the best mulch for native gardens?

👉 Wood chip mulch, especially recycled bark, eucalyptus mulch and pine bark mulch, is the best mulch for natives, promoting microorganism activity and enhancing nutrients in the soil. As organic mulch decomposes, it releases nutrients, including nitrogen, into the soil to bolster the health of your native plants.

❓ What is mulching in permaculture?

👉 Organic mulching is the common practice of covering up soil with all kinds of organic materials such as straw, wood chips, compost, and crop residues. It is practiced for its numerous positive benefits, that may lead to an increase in crop yield, such as: Decreasing soil erosion from water and wind.

❓ What is the best mulch for veggies?

👉 They'll be better off with straw, shredded leaves, paper mulch or newspaper. These mulches can lower soil temperatures by as much as 20 to 25 degrees, which may keep cool-weather plants producing right through the summer's heat. If you live in a hot climate, use plastic mulches judiciously.

❓ What plants should not be mulched?

👉 It's especially important to avoid using rocks as mulch around common foundation plants like azalea, hydrangea, and yews; these plants thrive in acidic soil (soil with a pH level below seven).

❓ Is it safe to use black mulch in a vegetable garden?

👉 "Rust" may not have very positive connotations, but it is quite safe to have around the garden. Black mulch is dyed with carbon. This should not surprise us since we associate carbon with charcoal. Other dyes for mulch are vegetable-based and therefore organic.

❓ What is the disadvantage of mulching?

👉 Disadvantages of Mulching Although using mulch has many benefits, in some cases, its use can be detrimental to the garden: TOO much mulch (a layer more than 3 inches deep) can bury and suffocate plants; water and oxygen can't reach the roots.

❓ Can I mulch with green leaves?

👉 Leaves can be used as a mulch in vegetable gardens, flower beds and around shrubs and trees. As an option to raking, a lawn mower with a bagging attachment provides a fast and easy way to shred and collect the leaves.

❓ Can I use clover instead of mulch?

👉 White clovers are a top choice for “living mulch” systems planted between rows of irrigated vegetables, fruit bushes or trees. They are persistent, widely adapted perennial nitrogen producers with tough stems and a dense shallow root mass that protects soil from erosion and suppresses weeds.

❓ What is the most natural mulch?

👉 10 Best Organic Mulches for Your Yard

  • Wood chips.
  • Leaves.
  • Grass clippings.
  • Pine needles.
  • Straw.
  • Aged sawdust.
  • Cocoa hulls.
  • Ground covers.

❓ What do you put down between garden rows?

👉 Low-nutrient loose, organic mulches, such as hardwood and softwood chips, sawdust, straw, dead leaves, bark chips and bark shreds, are suitable for spreading between vegetable rows.

❓ Is mulching a permaculture garden?

👉 In a permaculture garden, a gardener grows food in harmony with the local ecosystem. Permaculture is also a design system that seeks out multifunctional efforts: those that provide many benefits with a single effort. As you can see, mulching certainly provides many benefits with a single effort!

❓ What is Mulch and what is it for?

👉 WHAT IS MULCH? Mulch is a biodegradable layer of organic material added to the top of soil in a garden or landscaping. In the permaculture garden, mulch mimics the forest floor, which is usually covered with herbs and shrubs, sticks and twigs, and leaf litter. In nature, bare soil equals damaged soil.

❓ What is the best type of mulch?

👉 Amongst the most popular living mulches are clover, mustard, sweet potatoes, and phacelia (great for bees). They work well as cover crops during breaks in vegetable cultivation and are then cut to be used as a green manure. Go into any forest and therein we can find the ultimate example of how mulch happens naturally.

❓ Is it worth the effort to mulch your garden?

👉 Mulch is a biodegradable layer of organic material added to the top of soil in a garden or landscaping. In the permaculture garden, it mimics a forest floor that is covered with a protective layer of leaf litter. In nature, bare soil equals damaged soil. Is Mulching just an Extra Task? It’s easy to wonder if mulching is worth the effort.

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Video: Cold Climate Permaculture: Using Wood Chip Mulch In the Garden!.

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