Dear Flowerangel,

I use pine bark mulch. It has a very natural look to it, better than some of the shredded mulches (like cypress and cedar) which look sort of artificial. It goes down a nice rich red-brown and ages gracefully to a softer brown. It also does not matt down like some of the other types of mulches which a plus when you're watering and need the water to penetrate and soak the plants.

The only downside is that during heavy rain it does have a tendency to float and you sometimes have rake some of it back into the beds.

I've found the best source for it is by the bag at Mendards - it goes by the name western bark mini-nuggets (this is different than the full size nuggets, this is much finer in texture). It''s almost identical in price to most of the other more mainstream mulches.

Also, if you're in the Northwest you may wish to try pine needles if you have a source. They're real popular in parts of the south and they also a nice natural look.

I've been switching over from bark mulch to composted grape pomace. This is the leftover seeds, stems and skins from the wine presses. It gives excellent weed control, is a great soil conditioner and is absolutely beautiful. The rich dark, almost black color really makes a bed pop.

This year I'm using garden compost as my mulch. Last year I used mushroom compost, but I am paying attention to Field Roebuck's comment that alkaline soils with low rainfall should not use a manure-based compost every year. With our low rainfall, salts build up in the soil.

The garden compost is actually more expensive than the mushroom compost. I have to buy it -- I use much greater amounts than my garden could produce, about 10 yards.

Rosefolly

Gonativegal
I do like the look of the shredded bark mulches. I also have access to lots of pineneedles. Would pine needles make the soil too acidic?? If so I could always use pineneedles on my blueberries.

Steveningen
Where do you get composted grape pomace? That sounds intriguing.

Rosefolly
I do have a compost pile and I could probably use some of that for some of my beds. I have a mountain of horse manure and shavings that I am letting age but it will probably be awhile before I will be able to use it. Does anybody know how long I should let the shavings and manure age before I can use it. I know I have to compost it well to kill any weed seeds.

Flowerangel,
I use cow manure in my garden, not as a mulch but as an amendment. In my experience...if you turn it regularly you need to wait one year to use it. If you don't turn it at least two years and three is better. But, if you wait three years you'll start to have weeds settle into the top surface of the pile that you'll have to remove before you can use it.

I use cedar mulch. It helps keep the bugs in the garden down. There is a lot of hoopla on the internet about not using cypress mulch becuase it is said that the manufacturers are stripping the ancient cypress tree forests to make the mulch. I can't speak to the truth about this one way or another as I have no personal knowlege about it but it's worth mentioning just in case that is true.

MeMo

I have used both Shredded Hardwood(NOT Cedar or Cypress) and Pine Bark(the mini nuggets, like native gal uses) I prefer the shredded bark over the pine bark because it stays in place a bit more. I would recommend either over most other mulches, though.
I normally spread fresh mulch over most of the beds in the Spring after my initial cleanup. This year I plan on doing a combination of compost and mulch, depending upon the bed.

Here we can go to the city brush site and get free mulch. If we want a finer grind, it is $.03 a lb.
So I use what is finer.

Flowerangel, From what I had read the pine needles don't add much acidity to the soil. You especially wouldn't have to worry about it if you rake out the mulch and add new mulch every year. It would over time if not renewed eventually break down and add some acidity to the soil.

I live in the south and pretty much everyone uses it here. It's very cheap and where I live anyway their are lots of pine trees and so it just sort of makes sense and looks really nice too. Plus if you have any problems with pine needles blowing into your yard then going with pine straw is much better then picking it out of the anyother mulch.

I'd like to thank you all for your input. This is the first year in a long time that I will be able to stay home and play in the garden. I've been getting a lot done and I am so excited!!!

Hi flowerangel - I have one more suggestion: grass clippings. We rake ours in the spring/early summer because we usually have more grass than the lawn can absorb, even with a mulching mower (and we mow about an acre). I clean out the weeds from all of my flowerbeds in spring, then mulch right away as I go. I only use about 2 inches of grass clippings. The "hot" clippings give the beds a wonderful nitrogen boost! The plants love it and the grass takes about a month to degrade. Then I either add more clippings or an assortment of other scavenged materials and compost. I only need to mulch twice a summer.

I use all kinds of other stuff, too. Wood chips (free from roadside cleanup), cedar shavings (from DH's woodshop), manure, many kinds of compost (purchased and homemade). Grass clippings is still my favourite. I often mix it with other things and then mulch, as well.

Good luck with the gardens - lucky you, getting to spend the summer in the garden!

Balsam

PS - forgot to mention that grass clippings MUST be untreated with herbicides or else you will kill your gardens! We don't use anything but lime on our lawn.

Thank you Balsam
I'm thinking that I might just put down some of the manure shavings and put lawn clippings on top until I can convince my DH to get me a load of shredded bark. I'll have to be extra nice to him. LOL!!

Pine needles have worked really well for me in the past, but it is not plentiful in the Dallas area. So I have switched to using compost as my mulch. I like cotton bur compost or composted pine bark fines.

Randy

I'm fortunate enough to live in dairy and chicken and mushroom farm country on the West Coast where sawdust and shavings are plentiful. I get loads of the manure with its shavings base and pile it and turn twice a year with my backhoe. After about 2 years, it's good for the gardens. I usually have 3-4 mountains on the go and use it on my garden and also load up the one ton truck and gift it to my friends and rels.

I also use fresh lawn clippings a couple inches thick rather than take the clippings away, compost them and bring'em back. This only when the lawn gets ahead of me- usually it's mulch cut every 5-6 days in the growing season and unnecessary to rake.

...Don