How to Protect with Mulch

There are many benefits of mulch in your garden. But did you know it can also protect your plants from pests and disease? It truly is a wonderful addition to your garden, and if you use it the right way it can save you from extra work and keep your plants healthy and strong. Here are my three secrets to how to protect with mulch.

Form a Soil-Plant Barrier

Many types of fungus, bacteria, or viruses can thrive in your garden soil. If they stayed in the soil, you plants would be better off. But rain, watering, or wind can transfer the soil onto your plants’ leaves and the disease can take hold. One way to protect with mulch is by forming a barrier between the plants and the soil. The mulch layer can block the soil from splashing up onto the leaves. This will keep the pathogens away from your plants. Then you can water your plants or weather the next rainstorm without worrying.

This doesn’t substitute for having good drainage in your garden though. The mulch barrier can help slow or stop the spread of disease, but don’t allow your plants to sit in soil that is soaking wet. Even a heavy layer of mulch won’t help. In fact, the mulch can keep your plants too wet and make a drainage problem worse.

Block the Weeds

One of my favorite ways to protect with mulch is by using it to block out weeds. No matter what kind of mulch you use, a thick enough layer will prevent weeds, or at least make them slower to grow and easier to remove. This can help your plants thrive by keeping the weeds from stealing water, nutrients, and sunlight from your garden plants. But it can also protect your plants from disease. Weeds can be host plants for fungus or bacteria. They can attract or provide food for garden pests that spread diseases. Tall weeds can even act as a bridge from the soil to the leaves for plant pathogens.

Of course, you can use other methods of weed prevention and removal. Pulling them out, using a hoe, or various chemicals. But mulch is one of the easiest “set it and forget it” ways to keep weeds from taking over your garden. You can mulch from the beginning of the growing season, plant into the mulch, and keep a thick layer on until harvest. No weeds, no problems.

Fix Soil Problems

The last secret I’ll share about how to protect with mulch is not really a secret at all. Most people who use mulch are aware that adding nutrition and organic matter to their soil can help their plants. But some mulches can do even more. Depending on what and where you are growing, certain mulches can help fix nutrient deficiencies or other soil problems.

For example, if you have access to seaweed mulch, there are tons of minerals and nutrients it can add to your soil. Compost can be used as a mulch if it has been hot composted to kill weed seeds. Acid-loving plants like blueberries would love some pine needle mulch to amend their soil. Even using dark colored mulch to absorb sunlight and encourage heat-loving plants like sweet potatoes to grow in the spring can help.

Basically any kind of organic mulch can help if you have heavy clay soil. The added nutrition and the composting of the mulch can break up the soil and prevent a crust from forming on top allowing your plants to thrive. Spent coffee grounds or crushed eggshells or seashells can add vital nutrients. You might not have enough to use as mulch by themselves, but they can be mixed in with other organic matter to help your plants grow.

If you’re looking for more info on protecting your garden plants, check out my post on how to Save Your Plants From Disease. I cover five common plant diseases with how to spot them and how to fight them.

Looking for a great way to track your garden journey from what and where to plant, to which mulch you chose and how it worked out? I have the Ultimate Garden Workbook with everything you need to keep your garden thriving all year long. Enjoy!