Клумбы в саду: Клумбы на даче своими руками (+95 фото)

10 идей, как сделать красивую клумбу на даче своими руками

В большинстве случаев письма приходят в течение одной минуты, но иногда для этого требуется до 10 минут. Возможно письмо еще не успело прийти. Проверьте пожалуйста внимательно папку Входящие (Inbox). В некоторых случаях письмо может попасть в папку Спам (Spam).

  Логин или e-mail: Или войдите с помощью этих сервисов:

Цветники на даче своими руками

Как выбрать идею для клумбы своими руками фото дизайнов

Прежде чем начинать создавать клумбы и цветники на даче, нужно определиться с планировкой. Проект вы можете составить и сами. Вот основные задачи, которые вам придется решить:

• распределение и планировка схем посадки;
• выбор растений для цветников;
• подбор дизайна.

Вариант схемы клумбы

Трудностей с выбором красивых быть не должно, ведь в сети вы можете отыскать массу фото простых клумб и цветников своими руками. Множество интересных идей можно найти в журналах по ландшафтному дизайну и садоводству.

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Теперь давайте разберемся, чем отличается цветник от клумбы:

• клумба предполагает соблюдение геометрических линий территории, на которой будут высажены растения. Подобные элементы ландшафтного дизайна бывают прямоугольные, круглые или другой правильной формы;

Четкие формы клумб

• для цветников форма не важна. При этом конструкция может приобретать самые разнообразные конфигурации.

Объемный цветник

Чтобы спланировать клумбу необходимо знать некоторые важные детали:

• правильный подбор цветового оформления цветника. Обязательно продумайте сочетание цветов и их продолжительность цветения;
• имеет значение количество видов. Не стоит высаживать множество разных сортов, достаточно использовать 2-3 культуры. При этом следует учитывать, как растения уживутся друг с другом;
• выбор формы клумбы можно подглядеть среди уже разработанных другими дизайнерами. Выбранная конфигурация не должна смотреться инородной в общем садовом ансамбле. Она должна вписываться в общую концепцию и стиль.

Особенности планировки цветника можно посмотреть на видео:

90000 Flower Garden Designs: Three-Season Flower Bed 90001 90002 Imagine a gorgeous flower garden drenched with color from early spring to the first frost of autumn. 90003 90002 A daydream, you say? Not anymore! This 90005 flower garden design 90006 fills the wish list of amateur and expert gardeners alike with … 90003 90008 90009 90005 Constant color 90006: Spring flowers and foliage in burgundy, pink, and blue give way to yellow, orange, blue, and ebony for summer and autumn. 90012 90009 90005 Effortless impact 90006: This plot is almost maintenance-free.For at least five years, it will need no staking, dividing, or pruning-only fertilizing, feeding, and maybe a bit of weeding. 90012 90009 90005 Easy adaptability 90006: The plot size can be reduced or expanded to suit your space (and time), and these plants tolerate most climates, whether the first freeze occurs on September 10 or November 15. (Because most of these perennials need winter chill, this garden is not appropriate for subtropical climates such as southern Florida and southern California.) 90012 90021 90022 Three Seasons of Color 90023 90024 90005 Spring Color 90006 90027 90008 90009 ‘Black Lace’ elderberry 90012 90009 Rozanne geranium 90012 90009 ‘Foxtrot’ tulip 90012 90009 ‘King of Hearts’ dicentra 90012 90009 ‘Obsidian’ heuchera 90012 90009 Wine & Roses weigela 90012 90021 90002 90043 90044 Tulips 90045 90003 90024 90005 Summer Color 90006 90027 90008 90009 ‘Connecticut Yankee’ delphinium 90012 90009 ‘Goldsturm’ rudbeckia 90012 90009 ‘Mardi Gras’ helenium 90012 90009 ‘May Night’ salvia 90012 90009 ‘Mönch’ aster 90012 90009 ‘Summer Sun’ heliopsis 90012 90021 90002 ( ‘Black Lace’ elderberry, Rozanne geranium, ‘Obsidian’ heuchera, and Wine & Roses weigela will still bloom.) 90003 90002 90043 90044 Heliopsis 90045 90003 90024 90005 Fall Color 90006 90027 90008 90009 ‘Arendsii’ monkshood 90012 90009 ‘Mönch’ hardy aster 90012 90021 90002 ( ‘Black Lace’ elderberry, Rozanne geranium, ‘Goldsturm’ rudbeckia, Mardi Gras helenium, ‘May Night’ salvia, ‘Obsidian’ heuchera, ‘Summer Sun’ heliopsis, and Wine & Roses weigela will still bloom.) 90003 90022 Garden Ground Rules 90023 90008 90009 The bed is 16 feet long and 6 feet wide. 90012 90009 The garden requires at least six hours of sunlight a day.90012 90009 The 13 plant varieties are massed in numbers of each for maximum color and instant curb appeal. The plan is customizable to your best advantage, as a border or an island. 90012 90009 To create larger beds, double or triple the number of plants 90012 90009 If space (or time) is at a premium, cut the length of the bed to 8 feet, reduce the number of plants accordingly, and forgo the large ‘Black Lace’ elderberry shrub. 90012 90009 For a centerpiece in the middle of a lawn, place the elderberry and taller perennials in the middle and surround them with plants of shorter stature, ending with Rozanne geranium and ‘Obsidian’ heuchera at the edge of the bed.90012 90021 90002 90003 90022 Best Three-Season Plants List 90023 90002 A three-season garden requires three essential ingredients: 90003 90106 90009 Perennials that bloom copiously year after year 90012 90009 Small shrubs with color-saturated foliage all season long 90012 90009 Plants that do not spread aggressively 90012 90113 90002 These characteristics are found in all of the following: 90003 90106 90009 90005 Elderberry 90006 (Sambucus nigra ‘Black Lace’) 90043 1 plant 90012 90009 90005 Weigela 90006 (Weigela Wine & Roses) 90043 2 plants 90012 90009 90005 Bleeding heart 90006 (Dicentra ‘King of Hearts’) 90043 4 plants 90012 90009 90005 Heuchera 90006 (Heuchera ‘Obsidian’) 90043 2 plants 90012 90009 90005 Black-eyed Susan 90006 (Rudbeckia fulgida var.sullivantii ‘Goldsturm’) 90043 2 plants 90012 90009 90005 Ox eye 90006 (Heliopsis helianthoides var. Scabra ‘Sommersonne’, aka ‘Summer Sun’) 90043 2 plants 90012 90009 90005 Sneezeweed 90006 (Helenium ‘Mardi Gras’) 90043 2 plants 90012 90009 90005 Salvia 90006 (Salvia x sylvestris ‘Mainacht’, aka ‘May Night’) 90043 4 plants 90012 90009 90005 Cranesbill 90006 (Geranium ‘Gerwat’, aka Rozanne) 90043 8 plants 90012 90009 90005 Aster 90006 (Aster x frikartii ‘Mönch’) 90043 3 plants 90012 90009 90005 Tulip 90006 (Tulipa ‘Foxtrot’) 90043 40 bulbs 90012 90009 90005 Monkshood 90006 (Aconitum carmichaelli ‘Arendsii’) 90043 6 plants 90012 90009 90005 Delphinium 90006 (Delphinium ‘Connecticut Yankee’ series) 90043 6 plants 90012 90113 90002 90043 90044 Helenium 90045 90003 90022 Tips for Success Every Season 90023 90008 90009 90005 Before you start digging 90006, arrange the potted plants on the bed so that you can get a general idea of ​​what the garden will look like.Remember to leave space between the plants to allow them to grow wider. 90012 90009 90005 Plant from the back of the bed to the front 90006. Set shrubs and perennials at the same depth as they are in containers. 90012 90009 90005 For a lush look 90006, plant tulip bulbs thickly (about 5 per square foot of bed). After they bloom, remove the dead flowers so that the bulbs put their energy into storing nutrients for the next season rather than into setting seeds. Remove tulip leaves after they brown.Do not worry about appearances; nearby perennials will cover up the aging leaves. 90012 90009 90005 Fertilize if you want these plants to thrive 90006. Scrape away any mulch from the base of each plant in the early spring and spread an inch of compost around the plants. In July, lightly mix bonemeal or a slow-release fertilizer into the surface of the soil above the bulbs. (90005 Note: 90006 Bonemeal may attract rodents that will dig for bones.) Learn more about organic soil amendments. 90012 90009 90005 Spread 3 inches of mulch over the bed 90006.It will help to retain moisture and suppress weeds. Use an organic material (such as shredded bark or leaf mold), which adds nutrients to the soil as it decays. Cedar bark mulch is an excellent choice as well, because the resins in it repel many insects and prevent fungal diseases. Learn more about mulch. 90012 90009 90005 Remove fading flowers 90006 to increase perennials ‘bloom production. Shrubs drop their old flowers and will bloom again if conditions are right. 90012 90009 90005 Do not remove brown foliage on perennials until early spring 90006 when new green growth appears.The dead material insulates plant roots from the temperature extremes of winter. 90012 90009 90005 If you must prune your shrubs 90006, do so after the shrubs flower, not in early spring. 90012 90021 90002 Once your three-season plot is planted, be patient. Perennials reach their full size and beauty by the second season. Shrubs grow more slowly, reaching their mature size 3 to 5 years after planting. 90003 90002 Do you have a perennial garden? What’s your favorite perennial flower? Let us know in the comments below! 90003 .90000 Making raised flower beds to harvest fresh flowers for summer bouquets 90001 90002 90003 This post may contain affiliate links. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, we receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. Find our full disclosure here. 90004 90005 90002 When my husband and I built and installed our first raised beds, my thought was to build them to grow edibles-not about making raised flower beds. However, I did plant flowers around the edges for ornamental reasons.But then I realized how much the pollinators love the blooms (and how much that benefits the herbs and veggies) and THEN I realized that since the flowers were in a raised bed where I harvested edibles, I could harvest some blooms, as well. 90005 90002 Rather than sacrificing flowers in my ornamental gardens for a vase, it’s nice to have flowers to pick that were grown specifically with summer bouquets in mind, which is why I’ve allowed fun annuals, like cosmos and zinnias and sunflowers to take over one whole raised bed.90005 90010 I’ve gathered a few tips for making raised flower beds 90011 90002 There is no one superior raised bed design that is specifically suited for flowers. I decided to use one of the first raised beds that were built for edibles, which are very basic rectangular structures. 90005 90002 90015 Materials and soil 90016 90017 I like to use untreated wood for all my raised beds. I usually fill the new garden with a mix of the best-quality soil I can find from a local supplier (I used triple mix for mine) and top-dress it with organic compost.90005 90002 90015 A simple raised bed design 90016 90017 The design of this particular raised bed is pretty simple: Cut two boards that are 1 «x 5.25» x 8 feet in half for the ends and use four 1 «x 5.25» x 8- foot boards for the two longer sides, stacking them two high. Use outdoor screws to attach the boards to 4 × 4 posts that will anchor the raised beds in the ground. You may also want to add a couple of stakes to the sides if you live in a cold climate as the boards can heave over time. 90005 90002 A simple raised bed design that will work for food or flowers.Illustration by Matt Filion 90005 90002 90015 Planting flowers 90016 90017 Some flower seeds, such as sunflowers, you can sow as soon as the ground thaws (check your seed packet for instructions). I usually start a few types of flowers indoors to give them a head start. 90005 90002 When planting, be sure to stake long-stemmed beauties as early as possible so that flowers do not flop in a strong wind or from the weight of their blooms. 90005 90002 I planted a couple of bags of gladiolus bulbs last year and the squirrels ate or dug up every last one.This year, I plan to place a simple cover made of 1x2s and screen overtop of my beds until the bulbs really take root. 90005 90002 90015 Feed your flowers 90016 90017 Flowers need food, so use an organic fertilizer (especially if you’re growing the flowers around food) regularly to help them along. 90005 90002 My favourite no-fail annuals include zinnias, cosmos and sunflowers. This year, I’ve added craspedia to my list (they’re the yellow lovelies that are in the folder below). And while daylilies can really take over a space, I have a few patches that I snip from for bouquets.Dahlias are also gorgeous in arrangements, though some are way too heavy for vases! 90005 90002 90015 Gathering blooms for bouquets 90016 90017 When cutting blooms for vases, snip them first thing in the morning and place them immediately in a bucket of cool water. Strip away the bottom leaves as they’ll rot underwater in a vase and re-snip the ends underwater before placing in a vase. 90017 90005.90000 How To Winterize Your Garden In The Fall 90001 90002 We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees through links to Amazon.com. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. 90003 90002 Winterizing gardens can be overwhelming for new gardeners. So, I’ve put together a detailed checklist that you can use for putting your garden to bed for the winter. In this post, you will learn everything you need to know about how to get your garden ready for winter.90003 90002 90007 90003 90002 90010 90003 90002 A friend of mine just bought a new house and she recently asked me 90013 «Do you have any tips for winterizing gardens in the fall?» 90014 This is a great question and one I get asked often. So I was inspired to share my checklist for putting my garden to bed in the fall. 90003 90016 Do not Get Overwhelmed By Winterizing Gardens 90017 90002 Before you read on or start scrolling down, let me just say that this list is looooong. I do not want to overwhelm you with tons of different ways to winterize your garden! But I’ve included everything here that I always think about for winterizing my gardens.This helps me stay on task and organized while preparing my garden for winter, so that I get as much done as I can. 90003 90002 This does not mean that all of this 90021 must 90022 be done before the snow flies … or most of it really. Most of this stuff can wait until spring so if you’re crunched for time, check out my short list of five essential fall gardening tasks instead. 90003 90016 When To Winterize Your Gardens 90017 90002 The best time to start winterizing gardens is after the first hard freeze in the fall.A hard freeze occurs when the temperature gets below freezing overnight, killing off tender annual plants and vegetables. Freezing temperatures will also trigger perennial plants to start going dormant, so you know it’s safe to start cutting them back. 90003 90002 Of course, you do not have to start winterizing your gardens right after the first freeze. You can take your time and work on these tasks throughout the fall, all the way through until the snow flies. Let’s start by listing some general tasks for winterizing gardens that apply to any type of garden you have.90003 90030 90002 Begin winterizing the garden after the first hard freeze 90003 90016 How To Winterize Your Garden 90017 90002 In this section, you’ll find a list of general things you can do for preparing garden beds for winter. In the next section, I’ll break it down to more detailed steps for winterizing gardens, including perennials, annuals and vegetable beds. Then, I’ll list a few tasks for overwintering plants. Finally, I’ll include a few checklist items for preparing your yard for winter too.90003 90002 Here are general list of tasks for preparing your garden for winter … 90003 90039 90040 90041 Weeding 90042 — Fall is the perfect time to weed your gardens! Once the plants die back, and you start cleaning up your gardens, it’s easier to see the weeds that have been hiding all summer. Water the soil a few hours before you plan to weed your garden. This will soften up the soil and make pulling the weeds much easier. (On a side note, this is the best weeding tool, hands down!) 90043 90044 90039 90040 90041 Mulching 90042 — If you have any tender perennials that will need extra protection during the winter, you can use mulch as a winter garden cover.Leaves, pine needles, and other organic materials are the best mulch for winter protection. To cover plants with leaves for winter, you can simply rake them into the garden bed if you have enough to cover everything. Otherwise, you can just use them to cover specific plants if you’d rather. 90043 90044 90039 90040 90013 Watering 90014 — It may seem silly to worry about watering plants in the fall when they’re going dormant. But keeping plant well hydrated in the fall is actually a super important step for winterizing gardens, especially if there’s a drought.Watering plants in the fall gives them a much better chance to survive the winter. 90043 90044 90039 90040 90013 Amending the soil 90014 — Fall is the best time to add soil amendments to your garden beds. Compost is a great amendment for any soil type, and a wonderful way to refresh your soil. But before you add any other soil amendments, be sure to test the soil so you know exactly what it needs. It’s easy to do with a home soil test kit. 90043 90044 90063 90002 Putting leaves on flower beds in fall 90003 90016 Winterizing Garden Beds 90017 90002 The steps you take for winterizing gardens depends on the type of gardens you have.Perennials beds need different care than annual flower beds or your vegetable garden. So, below I’ve broken down the steps I take for each of the three types of gardens. 90003 90070 Preparing The Perennial Garden For Winter 90071 90002 The main task you’ll have for winterizing perennial gardens is fall cleanup. You can completely clean your perennial beds in the fall, or you can just do the bare minimum. Remember, you do not have to do it all in the fall. There are lots of plants you can safely leave in the garden until spring.Here’s the order in which I work on cleaning my perennial gardens in the fall. 90003 90039 90040 90013 Cut back spring blooming perennials — 90014 I usually cut back all of my spring blooming perennials (peonies, irises, columbine, dianthus … etc) to the ground in the fall as a minimum. Since they are the first plants to grow in early spring, I do not have to stress about cleaning them up as soon as the snow melts. But again, these can wait until spring. However, be sure you make time to cut back your irises in the fall! This is the best way to avoid an iris borer infestation next summer.90043 90044 90039 90040 90013 Cut back aggressive self-seeders — 90014 Next, I focus on cutting back plants that are aggressive self-seeders (black-eyed Susan and other rudbeckias, liatris, butterfly weed … etc). These plants can sometimes become weeds if they end up seeding themselves everywhere. Cutting them back in the fall saves me hours of weeding out unwanted volunteers every summer. Of course, if you want those volunteers in your garden, then you can take this item off your checklist. 90043 90044 90039 90040 90013 Cut back summer perennials … or not — 90014 The last thing I do to winterize my perennial garden is to work on cutting down the rest of the summer perennials (lilies, hostas, phlox … etc) if I have time.However, I do not cut back all of my perennials in the fall because I like to leave some plants for winter interest and food for the birds (cone flowers, sedums, hydrangea … etc). Oh, and here’s a time saving tip for you … using a hedge trimmer or hedge pruning shears to cut down your perennials really speeds things up! 90043 90044 90092 90002 Getting perennials ready for winter 90003 90070 Preparing Flower Beds For Winter 90071 90002 Winterizing flower beds where you grew only annuals, tender perennials or tropical plants is a bit different than winterizing perennial beds.These types of plants will be killed off by freezing temperatures, and will not survive the winter. Here are the steps I take to cleanup flower beds in the fall … 90003 90039 90040 90013 Dig up annual bulbs — 90014 I grow tropical bulbs (dahlias, cannas, elephant ears, gladiolas … etc) in my flower beds, so the first thing I do after freezing temperatures have killed off the plants is dig up the bulbs and store them for winter. See below for details about overwintering flower bulbs. 90043 90044 90039 90040 90013 Clean out dead annual plants — 90014 Once a hard freeze has killed everything in my annual flower beds, I pull all of the plants out by the roots and toss them into the compost bin.Some years I’m too busy to pull them all in the fall, so I’ll clean up the rest in the spring. Do not worry, there’s no harm in leaving dead annual plants in the garden until spring. 90043 90044 90070 Preparing A Vegetable Garden For Winter 90071 90002 It’s much more important to clean your vegetable garden beds in the fall than it is for perennial or annual flower beds. Because there are more steps involved, I wrote a whole separate post about preparing your vegetable garden for winter. You can read that post for the detailed checklist, but here are a few of the main things to remember … 90003 90039 90040 90013 Clean out dead vegetable plants — 90014 In order to prevent diseases like blight from overwintering on plant material, it’s super important to remove the plants from your vegetable garden in the fall.So, after the first freeze has killed off your garden, be sure to remove all of the dead vegetable plants as your top priority. 90043 90044 90039 90040 90013 Destroy diseased plant material — 90014 Do not put any diseased plant material into your compost bin though. Any vegetable plants that had disease issues like blight or powdery mildew should be thrown into the garbage or burned to destroy the pathogens. This is a super important step for safely winterizing gardens, and will help prevent recurring disease outbreaks in your vegetable garden.90043 90044 90016 Overwintering Plants Indoors 90017 90002 There are tons of different plants that can be brought inside in the fall and grown as houseplants, or dug up and overwintered in their dormant state. You can also easily overwinter cold hardy plants in a garage or shed so they do not take up space in the house. 90003 90070 Winterizing Plants In Pots 90071 90002 There are a few ways to winterize plants in pots, depending on the type of plant. Here are a few items for your checklist for winterizing your plants that are growing in containers … 90003 90039 90040 90013 Move cold hardy plants to a protected location — 90014 You can also overwinter cold hardy perennials that are growing in pots.Simply move them into an unheated garage or shed to give them extra protection from the cold. Be sure to leave the soil on the dry side all winter so they will not rot. But check on them a few times during the winter to make sure the soil has not dried out completely. 90043 90044 90070 Winterizing Flower Bulbs 90071 90002 Tender plants, like dahlias, tuberous begonias and other tropical bulbs, can be dug up and overwintered in their dormant state. Read my step-by-step instructions for overwinter summer bulbs for more details.In the mean time, here are the two main checklist items for winterizing your bulbs … 90003 90039 90040 90013 Store your bulbs — 90014 After digging up the bulbs from your garden, remove all of the dead foliage and allow them to dry out a bit to prepare them for storage. I pack my bulbs into cardboard boxes, using peat moss or newspaper to keep them from drying out or rotting, and then store them on a shelf in my basement. 90043 90044 90039 90040 90013 Move potted bulbs inside — 90014 Tender bulbs growing in containers can be overwintered right in their pots.Simply cut off the foliage, and move them to a dark, cool (but above freezing) location for the winter. 90043 90044 90157 90002 Overwintering tropical flower bulbs 90003 90016 How To Winterize Your Yard 90017 90002 Sometimes we can get so busy winterizing gardens that we forget about our yard and the lawn. But, preparing your yard for winter is just as important. Here’s a short list of tasks for winterizing your yard to add to your checklist. 90003 90070 Fall Lawn Care Tips 90071 90002 Some people do not care as much about the lawn as they do their gardens (raising my hand!).However, there are a few simple lawn winterizing tips to ensure your grass looks its best come spring. Do not worry, I’ll keep this list short! 90003 90039 90040 90041 Rake leaves off the lawn 90042 — Allowing leaves to sit on the lawn all winter could leave dead patches in the spring. So it’s important to rake the lawn in the fall to remove all of the leaves. Leaves are great to use as natural mulch for your vegetable garden, around your perennials, or as an addition to the compost bin. You can also mulch them into the grass using your lawn mower if you do not want to rake, which adds wonderful nutrients to the grass.90043 90044 90174 90002 Raking is an important fall lawn care task 90003 90002 90041 Cut the grass short 90042 — In the fall as the lawn starts to go dormant, lower your mower blade to give your grass a nice short cut for the winter. Consider bagging the clippings to throw into the compost bin or till into your vegetable garden (as long as you do not chemically treat your lawn that is!). Fall is also a great time to aerate and dethatch your lawn. Get more lawn mowing tips here. 90003 90070 Winterizing Garden Furniture 90071 90002 To extend the life of your garden furniture, you should store it in a protected location for the winter.If you leave it sitting outside all winter, it’ll fade or rust, and break down much faster. 90003 90039 90040 90013 Put away garden furniture — 90014 Storing garden furniture in a garage, shed, attic or basement would be ideal. However, if you do not have the space, then consider buying protective covers for them. One caveat … if any of your furniture has decorative tile on it, then I highly recommend finding a place for it inside rather than just covering it. Tiles can pop or break in extremely cold climates like mine here in MN, ruining the piece (not that I would know that from experience).90043 90044 90070 Winterizing Water Features & Irrigation Systems 90071 90002 If you have a pond, waterfall, bird bath, fountain or any type of irrigation system in your yard or garden, then you need to make it a priority to properly winterize them. Do not skip these checklist items, move them up on your priority list for sure! 90003 90039 90040 90013 Empty and store small water features — 90014 Small water features, like bird baths and fountains should be emptied and protected to keep water from settling in them.You can get a fountain cover or a birdbath cover to protect them outside, or move them indoors. 90043 90044 90039 90040 90013 Winterize garden irrigation systems — 90014 Underground sprinklers, drip irrigation systems or sprinklers in an unheated greenhouse should be turned off and blown out for the winter using an air compressor. Garden hoses should be drained and stored in a garage, shed, or other protected location. 90043 90044 90039 90040 90013 Winterize garden ponds and waterfalls — 90014 In warmer climates, you may be able to leave your pond pump running all winter to keep the water from freezing over.But in extreme climates like mine, you need to turn off the pump, properly winterize your pond and waterfall to prevent severe winter damage, and adding a pond heater if you have plants or fish. Learn exactly how to winterize a pond here. 90043 90044 90002 Whew! I told you that winterizing gardens can be a lot of work! Just remember, do not get overwhelmed. If you can not get everything done this fall … it will all be waiting for you in the spring! Now that you know how to prepare your garden for winter, you can work to create your own customized checklist to make it easier next year! 90003 90070 Related Products 90071 90070 More Fall Gardening Tips 90071 90002 90041 Share your tips for getting your garden ready for winter, or your checklist for winterizing gardens in the comments section below! 90042 90003 90002 90010 90225 90226 90003.90000 Types of Landscape Mulch for Your Garden 90001 90002 90003 This post may contain affiliate links. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, we receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. Find our full disclosure here. 90004 90005 90002 The word «mulch» brings lots of thoughts to a gardener’s mind. Wheelbarrows, shovels, dust-covered arms, backaches, and calluses are just a few of the things the word conjures in my mind. Few people think about a ripe, red tomato, a perfect rose blossom, or a gorgeous hydrangea when they think about mulch.But, truth be told, without mulch, all of those beautiful things are far harder to come by. Despite its practical purpose and humble appearance — not to mention how much work it is to spread — mulch is absolutely essential to a healthy, productive garden. Let’s get digging into mulches and learn the whys and hows of this important gardening task. 90005 90008 What is mulch anyway? 90009 90002 Mulch is any material placed on top of the soil to suppress weeds, conserve soil moisture, add organic matter, and provide an attractive backdrop for plantings.Mulch can also reduce erosion, improve the soil’s structure and fertility as it breaks down, and stabilize soil temperature fluctuations. As you can see, there are so many good reasons to make mulch a part of your garden. 90005 90008 Digging into mulches 90009 90002 But, not all mulches are created equal. While any material placed on top of the soil is technically considered a mulch, not all mulching products provide the same benefits. Your choice of mulching materials impacts the garden in many ways, and different garden areas call for digging into mulches of different kinds.90005 90002 90017 Garden areas can be broken down into three types: 90018 90019 • Intensively grown flower and vegetable beds 90019 • Less-intensively planted areas, like tree and shrub beds 90019 • Walkways and paths 90005 90002 The best mulching products vary according to which garden area you’re mulching. For example, rocks look great on walkways, but are a poor choice for planting beds. 90005 90002 90017 Each of these three areas calls for a different mulching material. 90018 90005 90002 • 90017 In intensively grown flower and vegetable beds, 90018 you’re going to want a mulch that decomposes quickly to add nutrients and organic matter to the areas where these fast-growing annuals, vegetables, and perennials are growing.This type of mulch typically has finer-sized particles and is broken down by soil microbes very rapidly. 90005 90002 • 90017 In less-intensively planted tree and shrub beds 90018, stick with a mulch that is slower to break down. These products last longer, are less expensive, and have a larger particle size. 90005 90002 • 90017 For walkways and paths 90018, choose a mulch that’s very long lived. It may even be something that will not break down at all, such as rocks or gravel. Pathways need to be mulched less frequently than areas where plants are growing, so you’ll want the mulch to last for as long as possible.90005 90002 Digging into mulches also means considering the preferences of your plants when deciding which type of mulch to use in your garden. For example, blueberries, azaleas, evergreens, and other acid-loving plants love to be mulched with pine needles that, over time, breakdown and help acidify the soil. Most other vegetable and flower garden plants, however, prefer a soil pH around 6.5, so mulches with a more neutral pH are best for areas where these plants are growing. 90005 90002 Before deciding which type of mulch to use, think carefully about what kind of plants will be growing there.90005 90008 Types of landscape mulch 90009 90002 To help you decide which mulch is best for which garden area, here are details on a few popular mulching products. 90005 90002 90017 Compost 90018 90019 Finished compost is a useful mulch for many different reasons. It’s affordable (or free, if you make your own!) And quick to break down, making it a great choice for intensively planted flower and veggie beds. Compost adds organic matter back to the soil faster than some other mulching products.It also spreads easily since its fine particles sift down around the plants. 90005 90002 90017 Straw 90018 90019 Straw is an excellent mulch, especially in the vegetable garden. When digging into mulches that are loose, like straw, you’ll find that they’re also better at deterring pests that lay eggs down close to the soil, such as flea beetles, squash vine borers, and root maggots. Straw is inexpensive, easy to apply, and takes a season or more to fully break down. In my own vegetable garden, I use straw to mulch the walkways and larger vegetable plants like tomatoes and peppers.It also works well beneath cucumber and melon vines where it helps keep the developing fruits off the soil. 90005 90002 Straw makes an excellent mulch for garden paths and under tall plants like tomatoes and peppers. 90005 90002 90017 Shredded Bark or Hardwood 90018 90019 Shredded bark or hardwood mulches are great around woody plant material like trees and shrubs. Many landscape suppliers have single-, double-, and even triple-shredded wood products, depending on how quickly you’d like it to break down.While single-shredded lasts longer, it’s coarser in appearance than the finely graded triple-shredded mulches. Avoid dyed bark mulches, if possible, as well as cheap «gas station» mulch that could be made from construction debris and might contain contaminants. 90005 90002 Shredded hardwood or bark mulch can come in bags or be purchased in bulk quantities. 90005 90002 90017 Pine Straw 90018 90019 A popular mulch in the Southern U.S., pine straw is made from naturally shed pine needles from several long-needled pine species.Because the needles interlock and stay in place, pine straw is an excellent mulching choice for hillsides and other erosion-prone sites, as well as for flat ground. As the needles are fairly acidic, when the pine straw decomposes it acidifies the soil slightly, making this an excellent mulch for acid-loving plants like blueberries, rhododendrons, camellias, ferns, magnolias, and evergreens. 90005 90002 90017 Leaf Mold or Leaf Compost 90018 90019 This type of compost is comprised of a single ingredient: leaves.It can be made commercially from municipally collected leaves or at home from leaves collected on your own property each autumn. Leaf compost is friable, loose-textured, and lacks weed seeds. It breaks down quickly to release organic matter and is a great choice for flower beds and vegetable gardens. 90005 90002 90017 Grass Clippings 90018 90019 When digging into mulches and discussing different kinds, one can not forget about the freebies! Grass clippings collected from organic lawns are an excellent (and free!) Mulch, just do not use clippings from a lawn that was treated with broadleaf weed killers or you could harm your plants.Grass clippings decompose very rapidly, but because of their high nitrogen content and fresh state, they can burn young plants if over applied. Two inches of fresh grass clippings added every week or two are plenty. They are a great mulch when applied between crop rows in the vegetable garden. 90005 90002 Grass clippings make an excellent mulch when applied between vegetable rows. Just do not apply too thickly. 90005 90002 90017 Mushroom Compost 90018 90019 Mushroom compost (also called mushroom manure or mushroom soil) is a popular mulch in some parts of the country.Essentially, it’s the by-product of the mushroom farming industry. Mushroom compost starts as a combination of decomposed organic materials like manures, straw, peat moss, and shredded corncobs. Though it’s originally used to grow mushrooms, the spent product remains high in organic matter and some plant nutrients. It’s inexpensive and readily available, and can be used on flower and vegetable beds. However, mushroom compost is not a good choice for shrub beds, especially those housing salt-sensitive evergreens.Mushroom compost is fairly high in soluble salts and, while mixing it into the soil does dilute them, applying a heavy mulching of mushroom compost can cause salt burn on certain evergreens. 90005 90002 There are, of course, other types of landscape mulch, but these are among the most popular. 90005 90002 There are many regional mulches as well, including seashells in coastal areas and pecan shells in the south. 90005 90008 How to mulch garden beds 90009 90002 After you’ve selected the best mulch for a particular garden area, it’s time to literally get digging into mulches and learn how to spread them.Regardless of what types of landscape mulch you select, proper application plays a key role in ensuring the health of your garden plants. 90005 90002 90017 Here are some excellent mulching tips to keep in mind: 90018 90005 90002 • 90017 Be careful not to smother plants under too much mulch. 90018 Apply two inches of compost or other fine mulches. For loose mulches like straw or pine straw, keep it under four inches. For coarse-textured mulches, like shredded hardwood or bark mulch, three to four inches is perfect.90005 90002 • 90017 Mulch should never contact the stems or trunks of plants 90018. Doing so makes the plant more susceptible to disease and insect damage. Never pile mulch against the stems and bark of shrubs and trees. A good rule of thumb is to keep any mulch at least three to four inches away from the base of the plant. 90005 90002 Do not just toss mulch into garden beds. Pay careful attention to how you’re applying it for the best results. 90005 90002 • 90017 The timing of mulch applications matters as well.90018 Do not apply mulch too early in the spring, while the ground is still saturated, or the soil may stay waterlogged for a long time. Alternatively, do not mulch when the soil is too dry. Wait until a day or two after a good soaking rain in mid-spring to apply your mulch. 90005 90002 • 90017 Apply mulch 90003 before 90004 weeds become problematic. 90018 Throwing mulch over existing weeds will not necessarily smother them, and you may find them popping up through the mulch a few days later. Weed beds thoroughly before laying down mulch.90005 90002 As you can see, digging into mulches means choosing the right product for each area and applying it properly. Though mulching is not a glamorous job, it 90003 is 90004 a very important one. With a good layer of mulch in place, summer maintenance chores, such as weeding and watering, are greatly reduced and your garden beds look fresh and lovely. 90005 90002 90017 Tell us about your favorite mulching product in the comment section below. 90018 90005 90002 Pin it! 90005.