The best mulch types to use in your garden include pine needles and bark, as well as straw, cocoa hulls, leaves, and even grass clippings. Cypress works well, but make sure you use sustainable mulch that doesn’t hurt the environment. Avoid using non-organic mulches including plastic and fabrics, and don’t use rocks or stones as a substitute.

These types of mulch include chopped leaves, manure, straw, hardwood, grass clippings, newspaper, cocoa bean hulls and compost. They are the best options for mulching vegetable gardens or mixed borders that contain a combination of trees, shrubs, and perennials.

We looked at the wide range of mulch types available and provided our top picks for the most popular types, including straw, wood chips, and rubber, as well as the best landscape fabrics, in order to cover a broad spectrum of intended applications.

Organic mulch options include wood chips, bark, straw, compost, and even grass clippings. Inorganic mulches, on the other hand, include rocks, stone, gravel, rubber mulch, and landscape fabric.