One of the many things I remember as a child, growing up in my dad's garden, is that he always had a huge pile of mulch he was constantly adding to. I remember the worms I'd find wiggling around, the smell of the damp, decomposing leaves, and copperheads looking for a warm place to sleep. Mostly, I remember the copperheads....
Which is why I use a pitchfork when distributing my mulch...
As I said in my earlier post, I have a pile full of leaves, grass clippings and sticks. Actually, I have three piles, each one is located within easy access of specific "needy mulching" areas. This year, I noticed after I planted my tomatoes and melons, they were kind of stagnant in their growth. So, after a couple of weeks, I had a duh moment and started piling the mulch around each of my tomato plants and melon plants. They took off. Immediately. All they needed was some warmth and moisture and mulchy goodness! The activity involved in the breakdown of the leaves is a warm process, plus just giving the roots a blanket of composted mulch not only feeds them, but gives them warmth and keeps the moisture in. I will never have to think about it again, as soon as my plants go in the ground, they will receive a thick layer of mulch.
Also, if you're like me and hate weeds with a purple passion, mulching is key. I rarely have to weed the areas where I have distributed the decomposed gold, and for that, I am grateful.
Just watch out for those snakes.....
Hee, hee....
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