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Maintaining a beautiful landscape is easier with mulch. Organic mulching products applied by a local lawn care company won’t suffocate plants and flowers as some plastics can. They also enrich soils as they decompose. Organic mulches reduce soil erosion, retard weed growth, and beautify the landscape. Here’s what you need to know about them.

5 Organic Mulching Options for Your Landscape

1. Straw

Pine straw, if not correctly laid, may form a thick mat that interferes with nutrient absorption. Use it sparingly and only in consultation with a landscaping service. Barley, oat, and wheat straws keep seeded lawns and gardens intact and discourage birds from pecking the soil. Unlike hay, straw is free of seeds that spawn weeds.

2. Compost

mulchingWhether you make compost at home or purchase it from a garden center, it is a nutrient-dense mulching agent. Among other benefits, it also absorbs carbon, reducing greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, it promotes healthier, deeper root systems.

3. Bark

Aged, dried hardwood bark is another natural mulching source. Hardwood mulches are particularly useful when spread over perennial beds and around trees and shrubs. They keep the underlying soil in the neutral-to-alkaline range, which is beneficial for plants and trees that thrive in alkaline soils, such as lilacs and gingkoes. 

4. Cardboard

Undyed, adhesive-free cardboard makes an effective mulch when shredded. It, along with black-and-white newspaper and straw, are mainly used for weed suppression since they don’t provide the aesthetic nor the nourishing benefits of bark or compost.

5. Shredded Leaves & Grass Clippings

Leaves and grass clippings also provide organic mulching benefits for garden beds and around trees and shrubs. Like straw, grass can mat if too many layers are applied. Avoid using any leaf or grass clippings that have been treated with pesticides or herbicides as mulch.

 

Discuss your mulching needs with the friendly team at Going Green Lawn Services, LLC. Serving residents in Illinois and Missouri in and around the St. Louis metro area since 1999, they will help establish and beautifully maintain your property with mulch, tree trimming, pest control, and seeding services. Call (636) 388-2883 today to schedule an appointment, or learn more about this garden and lawn care team online.

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