Re-mulching your flowerbeds is an important operation that should be done every spring.
- First remove any grass or weeds that have crept into your planting beds.
- Then till existing mulch into the soil (or work in with a gardening fork) to help loosen the soil around your plants and enable water and nutrients to penetrate.
- If the soil is heavy and hard, amendments such as peat can be worked in to help create a lighter texture.
- Work in a light application of well-aged manure or a commercial time-release fertilizer.
- Remove any dead plants and install new plants before you apply your mulch layer.
- Mulch with "finished" compost from your pile or a good commercial wood mulch, placed three-to-four inches deep in the bed. Mulch this thick controls weeds and grasses and helps maintain moisture and a moderate soil temperature.
- Although fine mulch should be used to create a good barrier on top of the soil, larger size bark "nuggets" can be added as a top layer to dress the bed up.
Pat N. Vickery, Smith County Master Gardener
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