Mulch is important to the health of your flowerbed plants. There are many types of mulch material you can choose from. What options for mulch material are out there? How do you decide which is the right choice for your landscape? What are the pros and cons of each type of mulch? We're going to discuss all of these question in this blog post! Keep reading to learn more about mulch.
Types of Mulch
The mulch you choose to install in your landscape is mainly a matter of your personal preference. There's not really a right or wrong choice in most cases. Each type of mulch material has a unique set of pros and cons. The mulch material you decide to use depends on which best suits your needs and the look you want to achieve in your landscape.
In the video below, Terry McNair, owner of Real Turf Solutions discusses some things to keep in mind when selecting mulch for your landscape and flowerbeds. Watch the video, then we'll break down different types of mulch options. Pinestraw
Pinestraw is a common mulch material used in the Middle Georgia area, and many other places. It is fairly easy and cheap to obtain and adds that glowing orange color in the landscape.
Freshly laid and blow tucked pinestraw.
Benefits of Pinestraw
Pinestraw has several qualities which make it a popular mulch material installed in Middle Georgia. We've listed some of the main benefits of using pinestraw in your landscape below.
Pinestraw Pros:
Drawbacks of Pinestraw
Pinestraw does have a few weaknesses you should be aware of.
Pinestraw Cons:
Wood Mulch
Wood mulch is another common mulch material used in landscaping around Middle Georgia. It requires a bit more work to install than pinestraw, especially for large areas. However, wood mulch provides you with more options than straw as well.
Red wood chip mulch
Benefits of Wood Mulch
There are several reasons to choose wood mulch for your landscape and flowerbeds. We've listed the main benefits of wood mulch below.
Wood Mulch Pros:
Drawbacks of Wood Mulch
Wood mulch does have a few drawbacks like everything else. We've listed the main ones below.
Wood Mulch Cons:
Pine Bark Nuggets
Pine bark nuggets are basically chips made from the bark of pine trees. They are not commonly used for large landscape beds. Pine bark nuggets are a more specialized type of mulch material. They are mainly used as a mulch material in small flowerbeds and large planting containers.
​You may see beds with flower arrangements in an area of pine bark nuggets surrounded by pinestraw in the rest of the bed. An example of this can be seen in the photo below. 
Pine bark nuggets used to create an area for annual flowers
Benefits of Pine Bark Nuggets
While they aren't commonly used, pine bark nuggets have some qualities which make them great for smaller areas.
Pine Bark Nuggets Pros:
Drawbacks of Pine Bark Nuggets
There are some reasons why pine bark nuggets aren't the best choice for large bed areas in the landscape.
Pine Bark Nuggets Cons:
Egg Rock
Organic mulch types aren't the only option for your landscape. Rocks are also used as a material for landscape beds. Egg rocks, or river rocks, are a common type of rock used in beds around Middle Georgia.
Installing an egg rock bed.
Benefits of Egg Rock
There are a few reasons why you might choose to use rocks instead of an organic mulch material.
Egg Rock Pros:
Drawbacks of Egg Rock
There are a few tradeoffs to using rock instead of organic mulch though. Some of the drawbacks are listed below.
Egg Rock Cons:
Artificial Mulch
Artificial mulch is a relatively new thing. It is made to look like pinestraw or wood mulch, but doesn't brake down since it is made of rubber material. We don't see many landscapes using artificial mulch yet, but the option is out there if you have the budget for it.
Benefits of Artificial Mulch
The main appeal of artificial mulch is that it lasts and doesn't break down. You have it installed once and then only occasional touch-ups are needed every few years or so.
Drawbacks of Artificial Mulch
There are a few reasons why artificial mulch may not be the best choice for your landscape. We've listed some of the main drawbacks of it below.
Artificial Mulch Cons:
Mulch is very important to the health of your plants. It is also a key part of making your property look good. We hope this helps you decide what mulch will be best for your landscape! There isn't really a right or wrong choice, it's mainly about the look you want in your landscape, and which mulch suits your needs.
If you have any questions about mulch, please feel free to reach out to us and we'll be happy to help. If you live in Middle Georgia, we'll be glad to give you a free estimate on mulch installation too.
14 Comments
1/6/2022 12:03:58 am
Thanks for pointing out that mulch is also a key part of making our property look good. My husband and I want to improve our backyard before our parents come to visit in March. With this, we are hoping to find a reliable company on Monday that can provide quality hardwood blend mulch at an affordable rate. 1/20/2022 10:31:09 pm
The fact that different mulch materials can provide great natural color to your landscape was extremely interesting. I want my property to feel as natural as possible, so using colors that don't feel very fake at all sounds perfect for that. I'll definitely ask for organic mulch materials like the ones you talked about when I work with a landscaping contractor. It got me when you said that artificial mulch will not break down because of being made from rubber. I should probably choose that kind of material for my small backyard here in the city. It would be perfect for my hectic schedule as well since I won't have to worry about maintaining it that much while still having the greenery I wanted to see on my property. 7/1/2022 05:23:20 pm
I never knew that different mulch has different care. However, it does make sense since they all have varying purposes and advantages. Since I am not certain of the type of mulch that is suitable for my garden, maybe I should speak with a professional to help me. 11/29/2022 01:10:50 pm
I'm glad you mentioned that you can add organic material to your soil with pine straw mulch! My husband and I want to start working on our garden in a couple of weeks, so I want to look into finding mulch we can use on our landscape. I'll keep these tips in mind once we hire a professional who can provide mulch for us! 1/10/2023 11:44:36 pm
It really helped when you said that we can decide on the type of mulch to get depending on what our needs are and what we want to achieve for our landscape. I will ask about that when I consider crushed rocks for the sides of the walkways I wanted to have to go to the garden. It just seems like a great option to keep pants from being stepped on when there is a little distance between them. 1/26/2023 04:30:08 pm
It really helped that you described different types of mulch and how to find the best one for our needs. We decided to start taking better care of our house's exterior space, so we want to use mulch for our garden and landscape, and your article will help us know which one to pick. My wife and I appreciate your intake of wood mulch and how it comes in different colors and is an organic option for our soil. 2/27/2023 02:59:18 am
Thank you for mentioning that rocks may also be used to make landscaping beds. My sister is enhancing the scenery in her yard. I'll advise her to arrange for the delivery of landscaping rock so she can use it to round out the garden beds. 3/1/2023 01:27:35 am
It's beneficial that you discussed the various types of mulch you may use for landscaping, including pine straw and wood mulch. We have been arguing about which kind of mulch would be most advantageous as my husband and I search for the best mulch to put to our yard. Nevertheless, as you noted, there is no such thing as right or wrong; instead, it all depends on our preferences. Simply put, we wanted to be sure that anything we chose would be good for the yard. I appreciate you sharing this. We'll be sure to keep this in mind while speaking with our contractor because it truly helped us put things into perspective. 4/12/2023 09:20:26 am
It is a very useful blog and very important information about Mulch. 5/23/2023 06:28:21 pm
It's good to know that Pinestraw is a cheap option. My husband was talking to me a couple of nights ago about how he thinks it would be a good idea for us to use mulch in our garden, so I wanted to do some research on which type would be best to choose. I appreciate you helping me learn more about the different types of mulch to choose from! 8/2/2023 04:23:22 am
Mulch is a game-changer for gardeners! It conserves moisture, suppresses weeds, and nourishes the soil, making it a must-have for any thriving garden." 5/20/2024 01:58:20 am
"I found this article to be both informative and engaging. The topic is well-explained, and I appreciate the effort you've put into sharing your knowledge. Well done!" Leave a Reply. |
By: William AdamsIn 09/2018 William started at Real Turf working in the field having never done manual labor before. He wasn't expected to last the first day. Terry recognized ways William could benefit the company more, and after 5 months of working full-time on lawn service and enhancement crews, William was given a position doing digital marketing, IT, & quality control work. Categories
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