The words potager garden most probably evoke images of small, orderly beds of vegetables swathed in splashes of bright colors from flowers. But under such a pretty picture often comes the unsung hero-mulch. Mulching is that blanket your garden never knew it needed; it protects, nurtures, and at times-let’s face it-even performs magic upon your green patch. Have a cuppa, and let me get digging into what ‘mulch‘ can really do to your dear green patch.
Organic mulch is first. Organic mulch is manufactured from things that existed in life, such as straw, grass clippings, and wood chips. It is like the unsung hero in a buddy movie-quiet yet suddenly indispensable.
It therefore becomes more popular when it decays, enriching the soil while keeping weeds from setting base therein. Take straw, for instance. Straw is light and fluffy and can keep moisture locked indoors because of its airy structure. Besides, it decomposes over time and imparts much-needed nourishment to the earth. But make sure the hay is seedless!
Just a bad actor, standing in the wings, waiting. From wood chips, the class is all about an earthy tone and pleasing aesthetics; again, they dance so eloquently between the ornamental and functional. One possible drawback: As they decompose, they steal all the nitrogen for themselves, leaving your poor plants high and dry. The drama!
And then of course, there are grass clippings: the gold of lawn care. They are free and act like fertilizers. Moreover, they prevent weeds from growing.
Still, caution: lay them on thick, and you may find your self repelling water, making Sahara dessert in miniature. But the real star may be compost: organic heaven that’s the best for soil, really, just like that omnivorous dinner guest who will attend to everything, takes it all in, so that plants bloom greener and colored properly. When done right, compost can make that ho-hum plot a work of genius.
Now, the time to wear another hat and applaud: inorganic mulch. These are stoic warriors against the elements. First, there is landscape fabric; this is giving armor to your garden. It goes underneath the gravel for protection against weed invasion, yet still allows water and nutrients to seep through. It is gravel that adds that Mediterranean oomph, like some sun-kissed cousin overseas, and it insures the roots stay cool while setting your garden off like it’s a postcard from Provence. They do great at the feet of succulents! On a hot summer afternoon, they become small sauna stones which are overheatingly warming the soil like an oven. With them, too, one should also handle with care.
Rubber mulch is the new wonder. Manufactured from used tyres, weatherproof and permanent. The skyscraper of mulches: hardwearing but a bit impersonal. Also impervious to decay, its sort of a non-contributor to the soil’s nutritional levels, either. Not every gardener’s cup of tea. Be the choice as it may, there is always that golden rule: that mulch should fit not only in one’s garden but also fit into one’s taste.
But mastery of mulch is the secret sauce that really makes the potager yield.
And so, headlong into a world of the potager: full vegetables just out of the garden, fragrant herbs, bright flowers dancing together in perfect harmony right outside your door.
But herein lies the catch: for those green dreams to come into being, there has to be that secret ingredient, and that is mulch. Unsung, yes, but this humble, grounds-pulling material just so happens to be the exact hero of gardening. Perhaps it is the mulch that is unsung in the chase of that great potager-what after all does this layer of crunchy goodness do to the soil? But mostly, it’s aesthetic. Mulch holds the moisture, suppresses the weeds, cools the temperature of the soil-and, yes, it keeps your garden looking spiffy. Sometimes, people really view mulch as that uninvited friend coming to every party, but trust me, this is the friend who brings the best snacks. And finally, about the mulch question: Organic mulches-think shredded leaves, grass clippings, and bark-improve with time to feed the soil. The potager is getting a vitamin smoothie. Inorganic mulches, examples being gravel or black plastic, lasts longer but feeds nothing to your soil. These also will be good for weeding and keeping moisture. Everything depends on what your potager will need. For inorganic, inorganic is one’s buddy if there’s long-term commitment with a shade of conspiratorial efficiency. If you’re going in for organic, go for it if you like your gardens to be well-fed and earthy. The thing is, now, as fabulous as that sounds, we shouldn’t throw caution to the winds and start laying on mulch in any which way, like confetti at a parade. Motivation is great, but strategic action is much better.
Put it on too thin, and you defeat the purpose of it; put it on too thick, and you will most positively smother your plants. You are going to seek that Goldilocks zone: about 2-4 inches. Give them a little personal space around the stems. No plant likes a mullet of mulch. Just imagine the difference between that beach frontage-which was little more than enough to feel a friendly nuzzle from the ocean breeze-and being swallowed up by quicksand. Exactly-you want the first option. Timing truly does make or break a potager’s mulching game. It’s like spring is primetime in the mulching world, right as your plants are going to kick off their growing season. And fall isn’t a bad follow-through either; slap it on your beds, and you will have an extra cozy cover for your plants as they bed down for a long winter’s nap. The prize is in keeping an eye on benefits and chopping down the problems to size. Old worldly wisdom an amateur horticulturist needs is the fact that mulch needn’t be a bottom breaker. Be crafty, and you can often pick up mountains of the stuff for little or no cost: raid either your backyard for those leaves or stop in with the municipality’s green waste-some cities go so far as to offer free mulch, like some folk do lemonade at a summer stand. Heck, they all but roll out the red carpet to take it.
