Garden DecorEverything In Decor For The Garden

BAMBOO ecological COMPOST kitchen pail ORGANIC mulch NU $35.95 Sustainable Bamboo counter top Compost Pail Made of sturdy bamboo 10″ H x 7″ in diameter Hold up to 3.25 quarts (3 liters) of material Stores several days’ worth of kitchen trimmings and scraps Smooth sturdy handle makes it easy to carry to the main compost bin Plastic inner liner prevents bamboo from getting moist Liner is easily removable and has its own handle 2 charcoal filters inside…

PotLifter 200-Pound Gardening Heavy Lifting Tool $19.99 You’ll find a lot of uses for the PotLifter. Two people can easily lift large, heavy pots, tree root balls, rocks or heavy mulch-filled bags using this surprisingly simple tool. Just buckle the ends around the object to be lifted. Carries up to a 7′ circumference and 200 lb. capacity, yet the PotLifter weighs only 1.5 lbs. Convenient storage bag included. Never worry about straining your back agai…

Easy Gardener 702 WeedBlock Biodegradable Paper Mulch – 3-Foot x 50-Foot $8.76 Easy Gardener Biodegradable Mulch Paper Chemical Free Weed Prevention Made with recycled paper, the Easy Gardener Biodegradable Mulch Paper stops weeds, period. It conserves soil moisture and lets air in. After the growing season is over, just till it into the soil. The Easy Gardener Biodegradable Mulch Paper is great in annual landscape and garden areas to stop weeds. Use in vegetable gardens for…

Eco-Shredder ES1600 14 amp Electric Chipper / Shredder / Mulcher $199.99 Making your own organic garden mulch can save you money, and it’s a great way to protect the environment through recycling. The Eco-Shredder ES1600 14-Amp Electric Chipper/Shredder/Mulcher can reduce leaves, sticks, and small branches down to a nutrient-rich compost that you can use to fertilize your plants.Whether you live in a wooded area that requires constant maintenance of downed limbs, or yo…

Preen Garden Weed Preventer – 5.6 lb. 2463795 $9.99 Preen, 5.625 LB, 900 SQFT Coverage, Garden Weed Preventer, Stops Weeds Before They Start, Prevents Weeds Up To 3 Months, Sprinkle Around Flowers, Vegetables, Tress, Shrubs, Apply Anytime, Spring, Summer Or Fall….

Weekend Homesteader: July $0.99 If May on the homestead is about planting and June is about weeding, July is all about eating. This month’s edition of Weekend Homesteader brings you back to the garden as you learn to make soup, freeze the bounty, and keep the weeds under control with mulch. Meanwhile, you’ll continue on your path to financial independence with a quick course on budgeting.For those of you who are new to the Weeke…

Mulch It!: A Practical Guide to Using Mulch in the Garden and Landscape $3.98 Weeding. Watering. Soil improvement. Frost and heat protection. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if these gardening and landscaping chores could be simplified with one easy method? They can! This book is a reader’s guide to the gardener’s secret weapon for healthy, carefree and beautiful gardens and landscapes – mulch. Advice on every kind of mulch and on how to use mulches on everything from landscape pl…

Extend Your Garden Season: Row Covers and Mulches: Storey’s Country Wisdom Bulletin A-148 (Storey Country Wisdom Bulletin, a-148) $4.95 Since 1973, Storey’s Country Wisdom Bulletins have offered practical, hands-on instructions designed to help readers master dozens of country living skills quickly and easily. There are now more than 170 titles in this series, and their remarkable popularity reflects the common desire of country and city dwellers alike to cultivate personal independence in everyday life….

should I mulch my vegetable garden?

I live in new england. Growing a organic veg garden this summer. should I put down mulch to help with weed control and retain heat and moisture? If so, what should I use? i don’t want to use commercial bark much because of the added chemicals and dyes. What do you use?

With the exception of clear plastic (which warms the soil), mulch cools the soil but it does preserve moisture. Grass clippings and compost are a good organic mulch. They are relatively high in nitrogen, so they don’t need extra. Wood chips, bark, and leaves are good for mulch, but they tax the decomposition capacity of the soil. Vegetables will not get enough nitrogen as a result of too much organic material. Depending on the decomposition level, add enough nitrogen fertilizer to compensate for the added organic material. Forgive me if I don’t speak strictly organic language. I’m hybrid in my gardening techniques. I use the developments along with the experience of the ages.

I use grass clippings, peat moss,”Nutrimulch” (wood shavings and turkey manure), cow maunure, kitchen-waste compost, wood bark, and chips, depending on availability. I add NPK fertilizer to boost growth and decomposition of organic matter. I till vines and stalks into the soil as early as possible to provide food for microbes and earthworms. And I get big yields of delicious vegetables: peas, beans, carrots, tomatoes, onions, garlic, parsley, herbs of all sorts, flowers, potatoes, and squash. I used a little greenhouse (what I call a hoop house) to warm my garden this year, and in spite of snows and freezing temperatures, my peas are nearly ready to bloom.

Vegetable Garden Mulch

Feed and mulch, cut back perennials
A layer of mulch helps keep water from evaporating so soil stays moist, allowing plants to thrive even without constant rain or watering. / NC State University/Special to the Citizen-Times