Mulching forever?
- Thread starter gusmanda
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JeffL
ArboristSite Guru
Mulch is a trees best friend, keeps away idiots with lawn mowers and weedwhackers. Helps retain moisture and lessens soil compaction, removes competition from turfgrass roots for moisture and oxygen.
etc etc etc
etc etc etc
ChrisWNY
ArboristSite Operative
Mulch looks aesthetically better than grass growing around a tree, and as JeffL mentioned it's a good soil conditioner since it reduces compaction and adds organic matter to the soil as it breaks down. Mulch, however, isn't always applicable in every situation.
I planted a bunch of hybrid poplars in a straight row across the side of my property, I mulched them the first year but have allowed the grass to grow into some of them. I just allow the grass to get long around the trunks, sometimes I pull the grass by hand from around the trunk if it bothers me. NEVER use a weedwhacker to cut down grass any closer than 3-4" from the trunk, depending on the steadiness and precision of your hands. All of my hybrid poplars are growing at about the same rate (4-6' per year, with 2-3" expansion in trunk diameter per season). The mulched hybrid poplars aren't doing any better than the ones that are not mulched. Then again, hybrid poplars aren't very picky about their environment and they have some of the most aggressive and invasive root systems of any tree.
The opposite is true for my River Birch, it LOVES mulch, I expanded the mulch area big-time this year because the tree has grown so quickly, and it really made a difference with growth this year. My River Birch is healthier than ever and the mulch bed around that tree looks nice as well. The wife put some flowering baskets around the mulch area to create a garden look and it turned out great.
I planted a bunch of hybrid poplars in a straight row across the side of my property, I mulched them the first year but have allowed the grass to grow into some of them. I just allow the grass to get long around the trunks, sometimes I pull the grass by hand from around the trunk if it bothers me. NEVER use a weedwhacker to cut down grass any closer than 3-4" from the trunk, depending on the steadiness and precision of your hands. All of my hybrid poplars are growing at about the same rate (4-6' per year, with 2-3" expansion in trunk diameter per season). The mulched hybrid poplars aren't doing any better than the ones that are not mulched. Then again, hybrid poplars aren't very picky about their environment and they have some of the most aggressive and invasive root systems of any tree.
The opposite is true for my River Birch, it LOVES mulch, I expanded the mulch area big-time this year because the tree has grown so quickly, and it really made a difference with growth this year. My River Birch is healthier than ever and the mulch bed around that tree looks nice as well. The wife put some flowering baskets around the mulch area to create a garden look and it turned out great.
Area Man
ArboristSite Lurker
I have a River Birch that seems to have suffered idiot damage in the past. Two of the three trunks had significant damage to them--from what, I don't know. Last year I had a single bungee cord around them to provide support, but it wasn't enough. I woke up one morning to find that one of the trunks had fallen right over. It was a total loss.
So avoiding idiot damage is important, especially if you pay someone to mow your lawn for you.
My question is: Are rocks (e.g. river rocks) an acceptable substitute for mulch? I know they don't amend the soil, but I'm really no fan of mulch, and would prefer to use rocks.
So avoiding idiot damage is important, especially if you pay someone to mow your lawn for you.
My question is: Are rocks (e.g. river rocks) an acceptable substitute for mulch? I know they don't amend the soil, but I'm really no fan of mulch, and would prefer to use rocks.
ChrisWNY
ArboristSite Operative
Rocks and gravel are fine, they still technically perform a similar function to mulch by reducing soil erosion and holding in some moisture (plus they help with drainage and more evenly distribute water over the root zone of the tree), but you'll probably need to add regular doses of liquid or granular fertilizer to ensure the tree is adequately fed. I see plenty of healthy trees that are "mulched" with gravel and rocks, so it's a fine (but not perfectly ideal) substitute for wood/bark mulch.
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