Mulch 101: Installing Mulch

For those looking to install their mulch themselves, Drumm’s Turf and Sawmill LLC is still here to help! Sometimes it can seem hard to take the leap and try to do it yourself, but following these easy professional steps can make your garden bed look almost as beautiful as if we came and installed the mulch for you.

The most important thing to remember when installing mulch yourself is to remember to replace it at regular intervals. Organic mulches can usually last around a year whereas inorganic mulch can be replaced when it no longer looks fresh.

Getting this timing right will make mulching easy and efficient, and not necessarily a dreaded chore!

As long as you remember to replace your mulch when needed, the other steps are super simple.

STEP ONE: Choose a Mulch that’s Right for You and Your Lawn

There are a lot of choices for people looking to add mulch to their garden bed. At Drumm’s

Turf and Sawmill LLC, we try to make those hard choices simple and offer two types of popular organic mulch.

Natural pine mulch is a great option for you if you’re looking for a 100% organic mulch. Our natural pine mulch is made out of the scraps of wood we run through the grinder. With a unique golden color, this mulch is created on-site at our sawmill and is a good bit cheaper than dyed mulches or even natural mulches found elsewhere. Plus, it’s a great talking point when neighbors, family, or friends come over!

Dyed mulch is perfect for those looking for a specific color mulch. We keep black mulch in stock all growing season to deliver when requested (no pickups!) and can source red mulch when desired. Both of these mulches are a wonderful mix of chips and soil. I absolutely love the appearance of our locally sourced black mulch and think it’s a great choice for those looking to spruce up their garden beds.

These organic mulches are great additions to yards and are quite possibly the best choice for newly planted trees, flowers, and shrubs because they add nutrients to the soil, protect the plants from weeds, and biodegrade as time passes.

Other organic mulches include grass clippings, straw, chopped leaves, and compost. While these types of mulch are great at naturally adding nutrients to the soil, you may also want to consider inorganic mulches like gravel, stones, tumbled glass, and river rock. These type of mulches prevent weeds from growing, help the soil retain moisture, and regulate root temperature. However, they’re less effective than natural mulches and are not biodegradable.

We directly offer gravel, stones, and river rock to customers interested in using those inorganic mulches.

However, the organic options of using natural or dyed mulch are definitely our most popular mulch products.

STEP TWO: Purchase Your Mulch

We sell our organic and inorganic mulches by the yard. Typically, one yard of mulch is enough to cover 100 square feet of space 3 inches deep.

Three inches is the perfect depth for controlling weeds without risking harming the plant life you want to keep.

STEP THREE: Pulling Weeds

Before beginning to install your purchased mulch, you’ll want to use a garden spade or a shovel to dig out any weeds in the area you want your mulch in.

You need to get deep enough in the soil to dig out the actual roots of the weeds or they may grow back!

If you have particularly aggressive weeds, consider using a chemical weed killer a week prior to installing your mulch. Make sure to pick a weed killer that kills the types of weeds bothering you and not one that will kill the desired plant life in that area!

STEP FOUR: Edging

Edging is an important part of prepping an area for mulch. By edging an area you’ll create a smooth line around where you’re installing mulch to keep it away from any nearby grass.

Essentially, you’ll just want to carefully dig around the area you want to mulch to create a border between those two areas.

We do this by using a professional manual edger and digging around the area that we want to mulch. At home installers can use a shovel to get similar results .

If you have any questions during this process, or want a quote on getting professional edging done in your yard, contact us!

Getting this step right can be extremely helpful in keeping your yard looking beautiful year round.

STEP FIVE: Add the Mulch & Rake

Start adding the mulch to the area in small portions. It may be easier to transport the mulch into the area by using a wheelbarrow and then shoveling the mulch into the space you want it in directly from the wheelbarrow.

Once you have approximately four small piles, you can begin raking them to spread them around the area. You can also use your hands to spread the mulch if that’s easier!

As you progress, you’ll probably need more mulch. Keep adding the mulch in small portions and spread before adding more mulch.

STEP SIX: Water Organic Mulch

Organic mulch, like our natural and dyed chips, should be watered after you finish installing them. This will keep the mulch from blowing away, give the mulch moisture, and will help set your mulch overall.

After you finish installing (and watering) your mulch, just keep your eyes open! Organic mulches will need to be replaced every year at least once and inorganic mulches will have to be replaced as soon as they stop looking fresh!

I personally recommend removing old mulch completely before adding new mulch for a revitalized look.

And, remember, if you need any help with the installation process, let us know! We can come to your house at any point in the process and give you an estimate for having us do the work for you. Typically, we are scheduled about two weeks out for estimates.