MULCHES – How to tell which one is best for your home?
Colored Mulches – Red Mulch and Black Mulch (really not mulch) it is a dyed wood to give you a color you like to see in your flowerbeds. Never put more than 2 inches thick. Since it never composted before receiving color if applied to thick in your flowerbed will start to look for Nitrogen and your plants will start to turn yellow.
Native Hardwood Mulch – One year aged hardwood mulch derived from trees from the region we live in and is composted for approximately one year. Does not maintain color after several weeks of sun.
Premium Hardwood Mulch – two year aged hardwood mulch that has completed its composting process; will maintain its color in full sun even after several months. Feeds nutrients back to soil. This is REAL MULCH.
Cedar Mulch – oh this is the special mulch that retards insects and snakes. Apply this mulch; it has a reddish brown look to it to your beds, will not float away or disappear when blowing hedge trimmings out of the beds. It remains in your beds the longest and part of the attributes is it comes from cedar trees; cedar oil is a natural pheromone disrupter to insects like roaches, ants, mosquitos and snakes. It does not kill these pests it causes them to go elsewhere while the cedar aroma is present.
Kiddie Cushion – The pulpwood of a pine tree that is used in playground areas (blond in color) set at depths of 6 to 12 inch to offset the potential for the child on the playground to obtain a concussion. This is not mulch it is an engineered wood fiber to be used for safety in playground areas.
Once you decide on the best mulch for landscaping, you need to determine how much mulch you need. Use our Mulch and Top Soil Calculator to find out exactly how much mulch to buy. Don't guesstimate, calculate, with a quick and easy mulch calculator.