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Over the Top Mulch, mulch everywhere! It's piled high on trees and shrubs, burying groundcovers and obscuring the landscape.
The problem, of course, is this recent epidemic of what’s known as "volcano” mulching: piles of mulch against the trunks of trees and shrubs, piled 8 inches to 16 inches over the soil surrounding the plant.
The most obvious issue concerns placing mulch against the trunk. This practice keeps the bark moist. Bark is not designed to tolerate continuous moisture and wet bark is subject to attack by fungi or insects and decay. Rodents also find mulch an attractive shelter and feed on bark during a long winter.
Mulch is used to control weeds, conserve moisture, increase water permeability, reduce run off and moderate soil temperatures. It also serves to protect the plant stem from string trimmers and mowers adding distance from mechanical injury It can be attractive too. creating a clean line and separating plantings from the landscape.
Most importantly, don't apply mulch more than 2-4 inches deep, total. This means 2-4 inches of mulch above soil, measured from the proper soil level. If the soil is too high around the trunk or if the tree is planted too deeply, you might have even bigger problems.
Freshen or replace mulch every 2-3 years. Fine-textured mulches, such as sawdust, double-shredded bark or buckwheat hulls should be applied only 2-3 inches thick, while coarse - textured mulches such as nuggets or wood chips may be piled up to 4 inches.
If you have any questions or would like more information regarding this article please e-mail me at j wood & bartlett.com.
BARTLETT
TREE EXPERTS
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