Wood bark has long been used as a mulch material to accomplish those goals. However, there are a number of reasons why you may want to reconsider using wood bark instead of mulch in your garden.

Wood mulch is a gardener go-to, and pine bark could work perfectly for your plants. However, consider the pros and cons before getting busy in your garden.

Tom, er, I mean Dennis, and I used to bark-dust our garden but switched to garden mulch about 15 to 20 years ago and haven't looked back.

Pile bark mulch deeply and water runs off, so plants struggle and the underlying soil is not improved, though bark mulch degrades faster than wood chips. Arborists’ wood chips are a mixture of ...

Bark mulch should never touch the stems of woody plants. You need a doughnut hole around your trees: a 4- to 6-inch area bare of mulch on all sides of your beloved trees.

Q: As you know, shredded bark mulch is beneficial for plants in conserving soil moisture, suppressing weed growth, tempering soil temperature and adding organic material. Does wood mulch adjacent ...

Pine bark is more acid (lower pH) than other mulches, which is very beneficial for most landscape plants. It also uses less nitrogen to decompose, so less fertilizer is needed to keep plants healthy.

Bark mulch is often piled high, almost a foot, against the trunks of the trees in and around Salisbury. Does it matter how much bark mulch is used around a trees and shrubs?

Bark mulch should never touch the stems of woody plants. You need a doughnut hole around your trees: a 4- to 6-inch area bare of mulch on all sides of your beloved trees.

When applying mulch, always leave a 1 to 2 inch mulch-free zone around plants. Mulch 3 to 4 inches away from the base of shrubs, and 6 to 12 inches out from the base of trees.

Mulch is a by-product, very plentiful and cheap if you live close to the source. Shipping is much of the cost of any mulch. Southern Ohio has active hardwood mills, which generate lots of chips ...