If you are responsible for the upkeep of a Florida property – whether residential or commercial – you are familiar with the annual need to mulch around your trees and flower beds and in your gardens. While you may understand that mulch makes these areas appear fresh and clean every spring, you may not truly understand the significant benefits of mulch, or why utilizing organic mulch is so important for our local and global ecosystems.
What Exactly is Mulch? Mulch is any material that is applied on top of the soil in order to improve and protect it. Mulch plays an essential role in maintaining the health of the soil and what grows in it.
4 Benefits of Utilizing Mulch on Your Property
- Mulches Suppresses Weed Growth: One of the most popular reasons for laying down a layer of mulch is that it can effectively slow down the growth of weeds by minimizing the amount of sunlight that reaches weed seeds. Of course, that same thick layer of mulch will limit sunlight to all seeds in the soil, so property owners must take care to mulch around – but not over – anything they want to grow.
- Mulch Helps the Soil to Retain Moisture: The Florida sun can be brutal on bare soil. In fact, without intervention, our climate will quickly evaporate most of the water in the soil. Laying down quality organic mulch protects the soil underneath by helping it to retain the moisture it needs. On the surface, we conserve water by reducing the amount of needed watering.
- Mulch Moderate the Soil Temperature: The success or failure of your vegetation depends on the health of the plant’s roots – too much heat, and they will wither. Conversely, the plants accustomed to warm or arid conditions can suffer if the soil becomes too cold. A layer of mulch works to moderate and insulate the soil, not allowing roots to become too hot or too cool. By mitigating extreme fluctuations in temperature, mulch protects the plant’s roots and allows for their long-term growth.
- Mulch Reduces Soil Erosion and Compaction: A healthy layer of mulch prevents wind or water from carrying soil – and the necessary nutrients it provides – away from the plants. Mulch can also soften the impact of people and machines compacting the soil underneath them.
The Fifth Reason:
Organic Mulch Production Saves Natural Resources From Landfills
When it comes to placing materials into our gardens and landscapes, it only makes sense to desire organic options that derive from living plants or plant parts. Compost, grass clippings, leaves, pine needles, tree bark and wood chips are all obvious alternatives to synthetic products on the market. As organic mulch materials decompose, organic matter and nutrients are helped by worms and microorganisms to infuse themselves back into the soil – making organic mulch a natural, slow-release fertilizer.
Homeowners and landscapers often “clean up” their yards by disposing of these valuable natural resources – throwing out old tree branches only to purchase mulch a few weeks later! However, when wood waste and vegetative debris is delivered to a collection and recycling center, it is recycled and repurposed to create the natural and organic products our soil needs to maintain robust health – while ensuring that the waste doesn’t end up in a landfill or incinerator.
At the Veransa Group, we partner with municipalities and area residents to collect and recycle vegetative waste, creating products that return to Florida soil to protect and nurture the environment. Our team of environmental experts is dedicated to ensuring that valuable natural resources do not end up in a landfill but are responsibly and sustainably used to support the future health of our soil. Call today to learn more about how you can partner with us and help to “close the green loop.”
Are you a property owner in search of quality organic mulch and compost in the Sarasota and Tampa area? Veransa sells organic products from our Tampa, Seffner and Ft. Myers locations.
