Mulch in February

• What is Mulch?   It is a layer of bark or leafmould or gravel which covers the soil surface in a pot or bed.
• What does it do?-It helps keep weeds at bay. It helps stop soil drying out. It stops soil splashing on the foliage in heavy rain. Straw mulch is used for strawberries to keep the berries off the ground.
• The best mulches are coarse so that they dont allow weeds to germinate in them. Best not to use fresh bark as it needs to rot down for a year. Fresh bark steals nitrogen from the plants beneath and can turn leaves yellow.
• Use home made compost on vegetable patches and mulch with bark chips on established shrubs and trees.  The mulch can later be mixed into the soil at it breaks down

When to apply?

Any time of year but in winter on established beds is ideal when soil is wet and weeds are dormant.