Comments on: On Mulch – Because There Just May be Drought Somewhere This Summer

By: admin

admin — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 17:32:32 +0000

I’m having monster slug issues this winter since it’s been so mild and I had mulched so heavily. I’m getting ducks. ;p

By: Grace

Grace — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 04:23:55 +0000

I used lawn-clipping mulch on the veggie garden last year. We spread it on the paths to dry for a few days, then mulched the plants. It worked fine until the rainy season, when the slugs moved in. And the last mowing turned to slime in the fall rains. Something else next year?

By: Laurie

Laurie — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 14:07:01 +0000

I keep a permanent mulch over much of my garden and just pull it back to plant. I find that when we’ve had wet weather it acts like a giant sponge, keeping the garden from turning into a muddy mess. Lately I’ve been using rotten hay, because that’s what I have available. There’s weeds, but the mulch keeps the ground from getting so hard so they’re easier to pull. Once I get it cleaned in spring, it’s really very easy to maintain.

For slugs, I use a lot of crushed eggshells and/or diatomaceous earth in the problem areas. Depending on the severity, I may or may not mulch if they’re causing big problems. Around us it really depends on the weather in a given year.

By: kitsapFG

kitsapFG — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 13:16:49 +0000

I mulch around perennial plantings in the landscaping areas of the yard, but I quit using organic mulches in my vegetable garden about a year after I moved to this side of the state… as they are huge slug havens in this coastal northwest property we now live in. The other reason is that they keep the soil cool and that is the last thing I want in this really cool damp location. I use larger amounts of compost to compensate and use other water conserving techniques – such as close planting to create a living mulch. I used to mulch all the time though when in central Washington and was a real advocate for it – no slugs and hot dry conditions.