A mulch question need answering please.

I have an outdoor plant, just one, and I was wondering if using mulch for to top 6 inches would be a good idea and if so, what type? THANKS

I am a indoor guy, but believe that no plants want to compete for nutes ,I do not have scientific proof, Just my 2 cents. good luck and happy growing!!!!

Mulch is any material placed around plants usually a few inches deep to reduce weeds, increase or decrease soil temperature, retain soil moisture and reduce soil compaction. The type of mulch one uses will depend on the function and the aesthetic value of the landscape.
Organic mulches such as compost, bark, wood chips, leaves, seed hulls, grass clippings, nut shells, newspaper, cardboard, or straw have the added benefit that they add nutrients to the soil as they decompose. This type of mulch needs to be periodically reapplied.
Inorganic mulches such as gravel, black plastic, or fabric perform many of the same functions as organic mulch but do not add organic matter to the soil.

Thanks for your 2 cents but you seem to know nothing of what I am talking about. Stick to your indoor growing... Thanks though...

make a donut, 6" high around plants. don't bury the bottom of plants. mulch is great for moisture retention

ok cool thanks scroglodyte, I probably would of buried the bottom without your advice. Again thanks a lot.

the root crown really likes to breathe

my bad yo, root crown?

Growman3001 said:

Mulch is any material placed around plants usually a few inches deep to reduce weeds, increase or decrease soil temperature, retain soil moisture and reduce soil compaction. The type of mulch one uses will depend on the function and the aesthetic value of the landscape.
Organic mulches such as compost, bark, wood chips, leaves, seed hulls, grass clippings, nut shells, newspaper, cardboard, or straw have the added benefit that they add nutrients to the soil as they decompose. This type of mulch needs to be periodically reapplied.
Inorganic mulches such as gravel, black plastic, or fabric perform many of the same functions as organic mulch but do not add organic matter to the soil.

Thanks for your 2 cents but you seem to know nothing of what I am talking about. Stick to your indoor growing... Thanks though...

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by saying i believe no plant wants to compete for nutes{ Mulch is any material placed around plants usually a few inches deep to reduce weeds,} you must have been in a bad mood my good sir.hope you get it figured out!

you can use anything that's not water soluble or toxic for mulch, but beware, many commonly sold garden mulch products are toxic, or break down into toxic materials as they decompose, and some are an invitation for pests.

Don't Use:

Wood Chips Many trees (oak cedar pine juniper etc..) are quite acidic, and release large amounts of tannic acid when they break down. you wont know what kind of tree was used to make the chips in most cases.
Straw or Hay Harbour for rats, and other rodents.
Rock or Sand Will get hot in the sun, and can compact your soil with their weight
Coffee Grounds Highly acidic
last year's leaves Harbour for moulds fungus and bugs
Visquine or plastic A Death Shroud for your roots.


Do Use
Weed Barrier Fabric
Chopped Up Old Car Tire Mulch
Redwood Bark
Perlite
Cocoanut Fibre
HOMEGROWN compost (most commercial composts are full of twigs seeds chopped up wood, random junk and undigested plant material, you might as well use miracle grow potting mix)
Low Lying Ground Cover Plants (like clover which actually adds nitrogen to your soil!)
Mosses
Iceplant or other succulents (keeps your plant's roots cool and doesn't steal much nutrients)
Complimentary plants (peppermint marigolds and garlic have a smell that repels most pest bugs)

Dr Kynes said:

you can use anything that's not water soluble or toxic for mulch, but beware, many commonly sold garden mulch products are toxic, or break down into toxic materials as they decompose, and some are an invitation for pests.

Don't Use:

Wood Chips Many trees (oak cedar pine juniper etc..) are quite acidic, and release large amounts of tannic acid when they break down. you wont know what kind of tree was used to make the chips in most cases.
Straw or Hay Harbour for rats, and other rodents.
Rock or Sand Will get hot in the sun, and can compact your soil with their weight
Coffee Grounds Highly acidic
last year's leaves Harbour for moulds fungus and bugs
Visquine or plastic A Death Shroud for your roots.


Do Use
Weed Barrier Fabric
Chopped Up Old Car Tire Mulch
Redwood Bark
Perlite
Cocoanut Fibre
HOMEGROWN compost (most commercial composts are full of twigs seeds chopped up wood, random junk and undigested plant material, you might as well use miracle grow potting mix)
Low Lying Ground Cover Plants (like clover which actually adds nitrogen to your soil!)
Mosses
Iceplant or other succulents (keeps your plant's roots cool and doesn't steal much nutrients)
Complimentary plants (peppermint marigolds and garlic have a smell that repels most pest bugs)

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USED coffee grounds are not acidic at all - they are in fact about ph neutral and are a great idea as a compost activator and for nitrogen
he's got one pot plant how many vermin are going to be stowed away in his six inches of pea straw or whatever ... lolz

secro said:

USED coffee grounds are not acidic at all - they are in fact about ph neutral and are a great idea as a compost activator and for nitrogen
he's got one pot plant how many vermin are going to be stowed away in his six inches of pea straw or whatever ... lolz

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used coffee grounds can still contain lots of acids, and volatile oils (taste some and see), straw muclh can grow an assload of fungus, and if he ever gets more than a couple plants a six inch deep bed of straw will be a holiday inn for rats. i usually preferr the best (most effective and cheapest) option for all uses rather than tailor made opinions for a single grow, or a single plant.

these recommended mulch options are fail safe, and work well if you got one cannabis plant in a corner of your garden or 3-4 acres of strawberries for market. they also improve your soil year after year by adding drainage, reducing to fertilizer, or increasing the beneficial bacteria and fungus load in your dirt. except the iceplant. thats just fun to grow, and larger plants look good coming up out of it. also if your in an arid region iceplant saves up water like a motherfucker and in a drought you can mow that shit and get it's water back into your soil

Dr Kynes said:

used coffee grounds can still contain lots of acids, and volatile oils (taste some and see), straw muclh can grow an assload of fungus, and if he ever gets more than a couple plants a six inch deep bed of straw will be a holiday inn for rats. i usually preferr the best (most effective and cheapest) option for all uses rather than tailor made opinions for a single grow, or a single plant.

these recommended mulch options are fail safe, and work well if you got one cannabis plant in a corner of your garden or 3-4 acres of strawberries for market. they also improve your soil year after year by adding drainage, reducing to fertilizer, or increasing the beneficial bacteria and fungus load in your dirt. except the iceplant. thats just fun to grow, and larger plants look good coming up out of it. also if your in an arid region iceplant saves up water like a motherfucker and in a drought you can mow that shit and get it's water back into your soil

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- volatile - doesnt that mean they evaporate really quickly ?? i had never considered oils in coffee grounds ....

Ok...imo...mulch SHOULD be organic of some kind...NOT PLASTIC..and i heard coffee grinds are good for keeping pests away

i use mulched grass from my lawn i have a huge pile of for my bell peppers. but you can use it for your weed plants too? good to know.

secro said:

- volatile - doesnt that mean they evaporate really quickly ?? i had never considered oils in coffee grounds ....

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nah, volatile means they like to bond with other stuff to form new compounds, like acids, salts and esters and whatnot. the volatile oils is what gives coffee it's flavor (and also herbs, and flowers too) they can be quite stable untill they get what they want to bind with (some like hot water, some like oxygen, some like nitrogen etc...) and they make their new compound. cedar trees and junipers make volatile oils that poison the ground when exposed to water and oxygen so nothing grows well underneath them. these new compounds can stay in the ground for years. same with coffee grounds. most (but not all) of the coffee flavor essences are dissolved in the first brewing, but if other oils remain. eventually (with help from worms and bacterium) they can be broken down and the coffee becomes rich organic fertilizer but as long as it still looks and smells like coffee it still has the ability to mess up your soil. if you boiul it and rinse it sufficiently it could be used as a mulch without changing soil chemistry, but as a mulch it doesnt hold water well. plants that like slightly acid soils (tomatoes and cannabis for example) do well with a little coffee grounds mixed in, but too much can make your soil PH too low and they keep leaching more acid into the soil as they break down. inside a worm's belly this is no problem but on your roots it can lock out your nitrogen.

This happened to one of my potted tomatoes this spring. straight coffee grounds went into the plat's pot without goin through the worm farm, and my whole plant turned pale and wan in a couple days. 2 tablespoons of baking soda dissolved in a quart of water fixed it right up. it was improving by the next day, and right as rain by the end of the week.

reppinhigh22 said:

i use mulched grass from my lawn i have a huge pile of for my bell peppers. but you can use it for your weed plants too? good to know.

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mmmmmmm..... not a great idea in many regions. piles of grass clippings play host to hordes of tobacco whiteflies round my area. if you're gonna mulch with grass clippings be careful of pests. any uncomposted vegetable material can make fungus, moulds and bring pesky bugs, as well as rodents and such.

if it's workin for ya thats groovy but it's no good in many regions.