We've used bagged cypress and cedar and the two giant piles of tree trimmer shreds that we got free, but this year we are going to Living Earth and getting a truck load of something prettier and darker in color. Not dyed mulch, but maybe pine bark. I hope that we get no nutsedge, there's enough here already.

I shred the large amount of oak leaves that our 20 trees shed with the mower and use that a lot, but it feels 'slick' to walk on when it's dry. I'd like to cover it with something more decorative.

I use the oak leaves and some threaded hardwood trucked in. I also will use the revitalizer with is some compost with sand in under my trees to give a boost. I buy it from a bulk soil place for about $40 a cubic yard.

Do you live near a papermill?

they have "grit", ground up bark/sand etc.

the stuff that they take off the logs.

great stuff. Can be delivered by dump truck.

Tree trimmers are your friends, & you can be theirs;

dropping the shredded tree trimmings at your house saves them a trip to the landfill & a big fee.

Put a wanted ad on freecycle or facebook, & pick up OPBL (other people's bagged leaves).

Gardenweb's Soil Compost & Mulch Forum used to have some really entertaining threads about snagging bagged leaves & chasing down tree trucks.

If I need a bunch, I buy in bulk from my nearest landscape supply place. It's also $40 a yard in my neck of the woods.

If I just need to freshen things up or do some small areas, I'll suck it up and buy the bags.

The weed seeds that tag along with it are annoying though, no doubt about it!

Thanks, all!

I was doing a search and came across a place not far away ... they offer $48 a yd, 3 yd minimum (more depending on the type of mulch). But what really caught my eye was that they install it. It's more than I was wanting to spend right now, but .... THEY INSTALL IT.

I wouldn't have to lug stinky stuff around, break 8 fingernails, sneeze for a week, be eaten alive by fire ants all day, then look like I have the measles for two weeks, limp around with pieces of bark in my sneakers, or have to hose myself off with freezing cold water before going in the house to shower. Win!

If they're doing the delivery and install, that's a heck of a deal, actually!

i understand cypress is not a good choice because it's becoming should i say "sort off extinct" anyway the bags i buy say it's made from leftover pieces from lumber, so my thought at the time was the lumber is being cut anyway so at least the wood is being used efficiently anyway, i build raised beds and use mulch to cover the sloping sides of the beds, mine are about 18 inches tall and it takes a lot of mulch to cover them and i don't want them washing away i figured cypress doesn't disintegrate quickly and eventually turns a nice grayish shade so far this is working very well i am looking at the garden from a distance of maybe 75 feet most of the time on closer inspection, it's not as attractive as other choices...

In Houston we pay $32/yd of pine mulch or 2.65 bag. When I get lucky, I get free loads from tree trimmers.

Mizzgg do you have a large property/garden? While $-wise $48 installed sounds good, 3 yds is a lot! Do these guys have the truck with the hose that spews the mulch? I think those are neat and do a fast job. I don't mind getting grubby plus consider mulching work exercise but it would be dreamy to watch somebody else do it

bossyvossy -- After 20 years of putting down our own mulch (3-4 yards dumped in our driveway and a solid day's work; ETA: ordered from Living Earth Technologies), we decided to splurge and pay a landscaping company to do it. Years 1 and 2 went swell: hmmm...we could really get used to this, we thought. This year, I wasn't around when the crew came by. I returned home to very light (colored) mulch -- maybe not aged long enough? Our shredded hardwood was always darkish brown. Landscaper told DH, "Yeah, it was lighter than I expected, too." Huh?! It's also a larger shred than we'd received in the past two years...no warning or explanation whatsoever. It may be back to DIY mulch come next spring. BTW, I'm in your neck of the woods.

MizGG -- I'd be all over $48 installed, but could do w/o the nutsedge! ;)

Bossy, we're on a half acre, with way too many beds. :D I think I could find a neighbor who would use some, if 3 yds is too much.

Hello @ Javiwa. did you give your service specific instructions on mulch type? Pine, hardwood, cedar will be different colors of brown. i do not consider one better than the others, more of a matter of individual preference.

MizGG great deal if they let you split with neighbor

bossyvossy: I sure did. What's more, this is the same service we used the past two years (small operation -- I always contact the owner personally and finalize details every time) -- always ordered shredded hardwood mulch, and owner gave me no indication this year would be any different. Though, it was rather odd that he engaged me in a conversation about new colored mulches that were on the market -- I told him no thanks...same as last year, please. It's just a shockingly pale expanse of mulch in our yards.