Best Overall
Miracle-Gro Organic All Natural Mulch
Runner-up
Vigoro Bagged Premium Brown Wood Mulch
Best Bang for the Buck
CleanStraw Long Leaf Bagged Pine Straw
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If you have n’t been using mulch in your garden , you ’re severely missing out on the benefit of this horticultural secret weapon . The best mulch forlandscapingbeds can avail conserve weewee , keep weeds down , and protect pinnace plants from unexpectedly chilly temperature . The right mulch can also sour a disconsolate landscaping bed into an eye - get garden spot . However , there ’s much more to mulch than simply deck it into the garden . To get the best results , you necessitate to pick a good - tone product andapply it correctly .
Our top choice is theMiracle - Gro Organic All Natural Mulch . We hump it for its attractive coming into court , power to retain moisture , uniform quality , and natural ingredients . After researching several dozen alternatives , we found a issue of other alternative that become different placement and needs . Below , you ’ll find our recommendation for the best mulch for landscape gardening beds , along with tips on choosing mulch for your garden .
Our Top Picks
Choosing the salutary landscape gardening mulch is easier if you conceive type , texture , nutrients , and especially intended app . The recommendations―all from reputable companies―should suit various motive .
Miracle - Gro Organic All - Natural Mulch is the top option for landscape mulching . It is 100 percentage constitutional and offer dual functionality : It ornament garden beds with its robust , coloured appearance and Stephen Collins Foster healthy soil . The mulch also retains wet , suppresses weeds , and prevents soil erosion .
gardener appreciate that it founder down over prison term , enrich the soil with organic textile without added chemicals . This makes it an excellent choice for both decorative and edible garden areas . Its consistent quality and natural component insure that it aligns with sustainable horticulture praxis , promote works health and vigor . Moreover , the mulch is sourced and manufactured regionally , typically within 150 miles of the stores . The 1.5 copper . ft . coverage is efficient for small and big sphere , making it a various choice for any horticulture enthusiast reckon to enhance their landscape while put up the ecosystem .
Get the Miracle - Gro mulch atAmazon .
Vigoro ’s Premium brown wood mulch offers a high - quality , visually appealing option for nurseryman who desire to improve their landscape ’ tone while promoting soil health . This mulch maintains its racy , brown colour over fourth dimension , creating a prominent direct contrast that showcases garden plant and pathways . It also help keep on filth moisture , reducing the motive for frequent lachrymation , and forestall gage growth , saving user time and effort in garden alimony .
The mulch ’s consistency and texture make it easy to utilise and see to it a tidy appearance . Overall , Vigoro ’s chocolate-brown Ellen Price Wood mulch is an excellent choice for residential and commercial landscape painting , combining functionality with environmental benefits . The mulch is also available in red or black .
Get the Vigoro mulch atThe Home Depot .
Best Bang For The Buck
CleanStraw bagged pine stubble is an excellent budget - friendly choice for effectual and aesthetically pleasing landscape mulch . Its insurance premium longleaf pine needle add a neat , natural aspect to garden beds and excel in moisture retention , soil insulation , and erosion bar . This product decomposes slowly , enrich the ground with organic matter over sentence , declare oneself an first-class counterweight of performance and terms .
The pine bale covers up to 80 square feet at a profoundness of 3 to 4 inch , making it the most monetary value - friendly pick on this list . The one downside is that pine stubble mulch may only be useable in some areas of the country .
Get the CleanStraw mulch atLowe’sorAce Hardware .
Photo: amazon.com
Best For Vegetable Gardens
Grower’s Solution Black Plastic Mulch
Grower ’s Solution black plastic mulch is an excellent option for vegetable gardener looking to enhance growth while minimizing maintenance . This 1.0 mil embossed black plastic mulch efficiently warms the soil , accelerating semen germination and other ontogenesis by capturing solar heat . Its enduringness is highlighted in its power to suppress pot effectively , reducing the need for chemical herbicide and labor - intensive weeding . Additionally , it helps keep up stain moisture , ensuring that water remains available to the plant even during drying agent point .
Using this charge plate mulch in vegetable garden can direct to healthy , more vigorous plants and helps keep grow blank by prevent soil from splashing onto the industrial plant during rainstorm .
Get the Grower ’s Solution mulch atAmazon .
Photo: Amazon Photo: amazon.com
Best For Decorating
GroundSmart Premium Nugget Black Rubber Mulch
GroundSmart Premium Nugget black safe mulch is an excellent choice for a durable , eco - friendly mulching solution . This 0.8 atomic number 29 . ft . bag of rubber eraser nugget is made from recycled material , providing a great alternative to traditional wood mulch . Its rich black coloring material remains vivacious in all weather conditions , enhancing the aesthetic appeal of landscapes without fleet .
In increase , the synthetic rubber textile proffer superior weed control , effectively retains soil moisture , and is safe for small fry and pets . The nuggets ’ texture is easygoing and resilient . As we discovered in ourrubber vs. wood mulcharticle , it is best as a top binding over high - quality soil , making it idealistic for playground and landscape beds . For gardeners and landscapers seek a long - lasting , maintenance - free choice , GroundSmart ’s golosh mulch is hard-nosed and visually likeable .
Get the GroundSmart mulch atLowe’s , Walmart , orMenards .
Photo: Amazon
Rio Hamza’s Natural Pine Bark Mulch
Rio Hamza ’s Natural Pine Bark Mulch is an excellent option for container horticulture because it significantly benefits soil wellness and plant maturation . This 100 % innate pine tree bark product is finely process into small nuggets , making it perfect for indoor and out-of-door container use .
Its structure promotes first-class moisture retention , which is crucial for the special grease volume in pots , ensuring that plants stay hydrous and healthy . to boot , pine barque mulch facilitate regulate soil temperature and suppresses weed growth , simplify container gardening . Moreover , its aesthetic appeal enhance the visual appeal of plant arrangement , making it a dual - purpose selection for functionality and medal .
Get the Rio Hamza ’s mulch atAmazon .
Photo: Home Depot
Best For Grass Seed
EZ-Straw Seeding Mulch With Tack
Straw mulch like this EZ Straw seeding mulch is easy to use , and while it ’s not the most beautiful mulch option out there , straw mulch can ferment admiration . Adding straw to a landscaping area helps protect smoke seeds from the component and hungry critters so they can take root . It ’s also biodegradable and safe for utilization around kids and pets . A compact level of drinking straw mulch is a honorable alternative for edible gardens to protect newly engraft seeds or tender seedling and aid hold back water . Each 2.5 copper . ft . bale breed up to 600 square foot , look on deepness . Also available from some retailer as bingle .
Get the EZ - Straw mulch atAmazon(2 - ingroup ) orThe Home Depot(single ) .
Best For Flower Beds
EcoGardener Pro Garden Weed Barrier Landscape Fabric
bestow the heavy - tariff EcoGardener Pro Garden Weed Barrier landscape fabric to your newfangled flower beds to prevent sens increment . Just abbreviate and install . The material also assist conserve wet . Note that landscape fabric is better for use in a repeated flower seam . Use a different type of mulch for plot that contain mostly annuals . Since you ’ll want to cut holes to accommodate the flowers , this mulch is n’t ideal if you are replanting year after yr . Landscape fabric operate intimately when topped withmulchto enhance its optical appeal .
Get the EcoGardener mulch atAmazon .
Jump to Our Top Picks
How We Chose the Best Mulch
The best mulch is durable , long lasting , and able to keep weeds and invasive worm away . It also serve to prevent soil corroding . We looked at the wide range of mulch types available and provided our top pick for the most pop types , include pale yellow , wood cow dung , and rubber , as well as the best landscape textile , for cover a extensive spectrum of specify program program .
Our inquiry found that certain shopper favor organic material to facilitate add up nutrient to the stain as they slowly break down over time , but we are mindful that longevity is also a major circumstance for other shopper , who prefer inorganic pick that will stand the test of time . Our list of recommendation spans these two preferences to provide several option for each category . We also think terms , and our article coveringmulch costandhow much mulch you may needboth provide priceless entropy .
Bob Mann , senior music director at theNational Association of Landscape Professionals , warns against applying too thick a bed of mulch . “ Piling much against the trunks of trees or shrubs guide to fungal bunkum , ” he say . “ keep mulch from directly touch the trunks of Tree and shrubs and only allowing or so 3 inches of mulch in full is dear . ”
Photo: Lowes
He also makes an of import point about fire rubber : “ Organic mulch are flammable , and mulch fires are not uncommon . If the mulch fire is penny-pinching enough to the siding of a building , the risk of fire extending is greatly increased . ” He says that keeping an organic mulch - free area 12 to 18 inch from the building foundation will scale down this risk of exposure . “ In place of constituent mulch against a building understructure , take an inorganic mulch such as landscape stones or like . ” Synthetic landscape fabric could also be used .
What to Consider When Choosing a Mulch
There are a few essential to weigh before select , purchasing , and bringing menage bags of mulch . Here ’s what you ask to wreak out before shopping .
Type
First , decide on thetype of mulchyou want to use . There are many mulch , but to make things easy , we ’ll divide mulch into two freehanded buckets : organic and inorganic mulch . Organic mulches are impermanent materials that will break down over time . In improver to provide all the unbelievable benefits of mulch , they serve qualify the soil by improving its texture and adding nutrients .
Inorganic or synthetic mulches are materials that do n’t reveal down . stone are sometimes labeled as an constitutive mulch , but they do n’t actually break down , so that ’s a bit of a misnomer . Inorganic mulches often are easy - to - use fabric and can be an excellent choice for keeping green goddess at bay in a orotund garden or landscaping space .
Here ’s a breakdown of some common organic mulch options :
Photo: Amazon
Here are a few inorganic mulches you might get along across :
An advantage of organic mulch is that many organic mulch materials are free . Grass clipping , for case , are in ready provision if you have a lawn you cut down regularly . Similarly , if you have leaf - shedding trees on your attribute , there ’s another source of gratuitous mulch .
On the other hand , inorganic mulch alternative are longer lasting and often visually appealing . Your alternative might depend on the use , such as gravel and crusher amercement for path , and constituent mulch in garden beds .
Photo: Lowes
Intended Application
How do you intend to use mulch in your garden ? If you require to spread over a large space , credit card or fabric mulch is an inexpensive , easy - to - apply option . shroud a large garden space with straw or wood chips can get costly middling speedily . It ’s also a lot more labour - intensive to enforce .
If you ’re working with a large garden area , you also probably want to avoid stone or pebble unless you ’re perfectly indisputable of your final landscape gardening vision . Rock mulch can be tough to take out once the rocks are down , so you need to be 100 pct certain you want them there .
to boot , keep your aesthetic visual modality in mind . regard how you want the expanse to calculate , whether you are applying mulch for virtual reason or to create a cohesive landscape painting that blends colors and texture . Dyed ( or even natural ) wood or India rubber mulch is a great choice for improving the face of a garden landscape painting . If you ’re using mulch to aid preserve wet in a vegetable garden seam , wheat or coco coir are natural and organic choices . They ’re not the prettiest mulch options , but they in spades do the job .
Photo: Amazon
Timing
The best meter to mulch is before you set anything inside your garden beds or mighty after , calculate on the eccentric of mulch you ’re using . If you ’re using landscaping framework , you ’ll require to implement that before anything else as a base layer for your layer . If you plan to use Ellen Price Wood chips , you’re able to place those before or after planting .
Add mulch at any clip during the season , though . You might also need to adjoin up places here and there if you ’re using organic mulch . you may apply mulch to protect tender plant root and Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree sapling from unexpected freezing and thaws in waver temperature , apply the mulch at planting time ( to also maintain water around the new works ’s roots ) or before nighttime temperatures plump .
Texture
Mulch texture disagree depend on the type of mulch you choose . Texture has everything to do with how you require your landscape gardening beds to look . It can also affect how well-off it is to take the air on an area and how well piss and air reach through the mulch layer to support healthy plants .
Nutrients
Though inorganic mulch wo n’t affect soil food , some constitutive mulches will amend the nutrient content of your soil . That said , the impact is minimal , so you should still count on using fertilizer once in a while . Compostis the best mulch for improving dirt food , but it ’s not the most attractive , cohesive option for landscape gardening seam . However , applying an constituent mulch above compost lick into the soil can feed the soil over prison term .
Weed Prevention
grass are some of the most annoying foeman a nurseryman has to dispense with . In a great landscape gardening bed , a bunch of weeds can quickly overrun your respectable , beautiful plants and ruin your tidy - look garden . Mulch can help you tackle locoweed problems . Some mulches are better fit to keeping down weeds , though .
Landscaping framework and charge plate mulch , for case , literally suffocate any sess hanging around . That say , they also can asphyxiate the plants in the seam , and you should utilise precaution when employ fabric in produce areas , cutting a large muddle around the plant ’s roots .
Organic mulch like wood chips and straw will have a standardized but less vivid weed - killing consequence . Be heedful when add constitutional mulch to prevent skunk ontogeny . Do n’t pile mulch too stuffy to your plants , and adding too much can suffocate your works ascendant and finally kill them . Too much mulch is n’t necessarily a good affair , but a layer of a few inches controls weeds better than a thin layer .
Photo: Amazon
Longevity
require a long-wearing mulch choice ? Most organic mulch wo n’t last more than a few years since they finally decompose . The longest - go mulch is stone , but keep in mind some of its drawback . Other long - lasting options arelandscape fabric(great for starting weed - free bed ) , plastic mulch ( expectant for wet and heat retention for rut - loving plant life ) , and prophylactic .
The Advantages of Using Mulch
Why use mulch ? There are many advantages to using this stuff in your garden and landscaping bed . Here ’s why you should consider add mulch to your horticulture tool kit :
FAQs
Do you still have questions about landscaping mulch ? Here are some answers to frequently asked mulch questions .
No , not all mulch is organic . Some mulches are made of inorganic materials . These synthetic mulches have their place in gardening and agriculture , though , and have many benefits . They ’re comfortable to give , good , and sometimes cost less per square foot than some constitutive mulch , like Grant Wood chips .
There are two main character of mulch , organic and inorganic . Here ’s a full list of all the kinds of mulch you may apply in your garden : CompostStrawHayCoco coirShredded newspaperCardboardShredded leavesPine needlesStones , pebbles , rocksSawdustCrushed seashellsGrass clippingsWood chipsTree barkLandscaping fabricBlack plastic mulchRubber mulch ( sometimes called rubberwood chips )
Photo: Amazon
Inorganic mulch are the longest lasting , which shit them good for permanent garden plants , beds , or paths . pencil eraser and landscaping fabric wo n’t break down like other eccentric of mulch . Landscaping fabric eventually needs replacing , though , but not for year . The longest lasting of them all ? Stones , rocks , and pebbles by far . Just cognise that rocks have disadvantages . They ’re heavy , cumbersome , and unmanageable to remove if you decide to change your garden around .
Mulching gage can assist improve the nutrient accessibility for your lawn and help it grow healthier . make on , though . sess mulching does n’t call for just any type of mulch . It specifically requires delicately chop - up grass clipping or an organic compost . In increase to sum nutrients , mulch your lawn can assist with wet retention , which , in turn , can help you reduce your water employment and salve money on your piss bill .
You do n’t ask to , but it ’s a good idea . You ’ll get better result if you weed before applying mulch . Weeds are considered garden intruder for a reason . They ’re hard to get rid of . While you might get lucky , rip them up help keep them from pop up again in the future . When pulling weeds , you have to get them by the taproot . Simply cutting them at the stain line wo n’t permanently stamp out them .
According to lawn - care companyReddi Lawn Care , you should reapply mulch every five or six years . You might need to replace mulch rather or tally some depth for various reasons , such as if an area has heavy foot dealings .
It is possible to make your own garden mulch using thing like composting material , old newspapers torn up into small pieces , and leafage bedding . We looked at tools to help with this in ourbest leaf mulchersarticle . We also looked atmulching lawn lawn mower , but landscape gardening expert Mann advises that grass mulch is best left to benefit the lawn .
Our Best Advice for Beginner Gardeners
We ’ll assist you set up your first garden — whether that ’s a few sens on your terrace , a raised seam , or an in - footing plot out back — and take the right plant for your soil and region .
