Content

• Steps
• Part 1 of 2: Choosing your mulch
• Part 2 of 2: Applying mulch
• Tips

Good mulch will help maintain soil moisture and reduce the need for time-consuming and costly additional irrigation. Mulching also improves the appearance of the landscape and helps preserve hardy hydrangeas during cold winters. In this article, we'll show you how to choose the best hydrangea mulch and how to apply it.

Steps

Part 1 of 2: Choosing your mulch

1. 1 Purchase a good quality, properly processed mulch. Always use a good quality mulch that has been properly processed. Mulch made from diseased or insect infested trees can infect your hydrangeas with disease or insects. To eliminate the aforementioned hazards, the mulch must be composted correctly.
   • The safest option is shredded bark mulch or bark chunks sold in bags at gardening stores. But many companies sell good quality loose mulch. Store mulch packaging should indicate that the mulch has been composted or sterilized.
   • If you are buying loose mulch, make sure it has been properly processed.
2. 2 For blue hydrangeas, use acidic mulch. Hydrangeas can bloom pink or blue. The desired color is achieved by changing the acidity level of the soil. Blue hydrangeas love acidic soil, while pink hydrangeas need more alkaline soil. The acidic mulch will change the pH of the soil and stimulate the formation of blue flowers.
   • Used coffee grounds can make a good acidic mulch. You can ask for it at a local cafe. They usually throw away the coffee grounds, so this shouldn't be a problem.
   • Other suitable acidic mulches are peat moss, pine needles (also known as “pine straw”), chopped or chopped pine bark, or similarly prepared cypress or eucalyptus mulches.
3. 3 To make the hydrangea bloom pink, use an alkaline mulch. Alkaline soil is essential for pink flowers, but alkaline mulch will be more difficult to find. Therefore, you will probably need to use a combination of neutral mulch and alkaline fertilizers to get pink flowers.
   • Try covering the soil under the hydrangea with a pH-neutral mulch (such as regular compost). This will not change the acidity or alkalinity of the soil.
   • To increase the alkalinity of the soil, try adding lime flour or chalk over the neutral mulch.
   • Alternatively, you can use a little alkaline mulch, such as chopped or chopped bark of deciduous trees. Unfortunately, this type of mulch is not alkaline enough to significantly alter soil pH, so you will still need to use one of the alkaline fertilizers mentioned above.
4. 4 Experiment with mulch, such as sawdust or pine needles, to repel pests. Mulch can be a good barrier to protect hydrangeas from pests such as slugs and snails. The best mulch for repelling these pests is sawdust or pine needles, as slugs and snails cannot penetrate the surface they cover.
   • An alternative to using these mulches is to apply a layer of pest repellent material on top of your regular mulch. Such materials include crushed eggshells, finely crushed walnut peels, a thin layer of ash, or even a layer of scraps of human hair. These materials are laid around the base of the hydrangea on top of the existing mulch.
5. 5 Purchase mulch flooring to keep the pH at the same level. It has all the qualities of a good mulch, but does not change the pH of the soil.
   • Good mulch flooring allows rainwater to enter the ground, suppresses weeds and maintains high soil temperatures, all of which will benefit hydrangeas. However, this flooring does not degrade like regular mulch (unless you buy biodegradable), so the pH will not change.
   • If you don't like the look of mulch flooring, cover it with organic material such as sawdust.
   • Mulching decking will be especially useful when planting in a completely new area. For more information on the use of mulch flooring, consult the manufacturer's instructions.
6. 6 Use inorganic mulch for decorative purposes. Organic mulch decomposes and changes the acidity of the soil, which is why some gardeners prefer to use inorganic materials such as shale, stone or pebbles as mulch.
   • They are more expensive compared to organic mulches (with leafy humus, for example), but they last longer and give the flower garden a neat and beautiful look. Replenishment or replacement of inorganic mulch, such as gravel, is a one-time activity and therefore requires less maintenance work than organic mulches. However, inorganic mulches are a little more difficult to apply the first time.
   • In addition to its aesthetic appearance, inorganic mulches have another advantage - they do not smell, unlike some organic mulches with a bad odor.

Part 2 of 2: Applying mulch

1. 1 Mulch in the spring. Try to apply the mulch of your choice under the hydrangea bushes in the spring (although this is not so important).
   • Spring mulching of hydrangeas helps to retain moisture in the soil during the dry summer months. Therefore, you can water your hydrangea less often.
   • Avoid mulching the soil in winter. This leads to the preservation of cold in the soil, which negatively affects the plants.
2. 2 Water the hydrangeas before mulch application. Remove all weeds from the garden and water the hydrangeas well. This will prevent the soil from drying out and keeping weeds under the mulch.
3. 3 Apply a layer of mulch about 10 centimeters thick. For best results, apply a fairly thick layer of mulch, about 10 centimeters thick.
   • Typically, fine textured mulches such as wood flour or sawdust are applied in a thinner layer (about 8 centimeters) than large chunks.
   • Coarse-textured mulches such as chopped bark can be applied in layers of about 13 centimeters.
   SPECIALIST'S ADVICE

   

   Steve masley

   
   
   Home and Garden Specialist Steve Masley has over 30 years of experience in the creation and maintenance of organic vegetable gardens in the San Francisco Bay Area. Organic Consultant, Founder of Grow-It-Organically, which teaches clients and students the basics of growing organic gardens. In 2007 and 2008 he led a field workshop on Local Sustainable Agriculture at Stanford University.

   Steve masley
   Home and Garden Care Specialist

   Sift the mulch before applying it to the soil to remove large chunks. “For sifting the mulch, I use a special frame with a wire mesh (mesh size 13 mm) attached to its bottom. Fill the sieve with compost and shake it from side to side to filter out larger particles. "

   
   
4. 4 Cover the soil with mulch, 8-15 centimeters away from the hydrangea shoots. When the mulch is close to the shoots, it contributes to dampness, leading to root rot.
   • It can also attract rodents, which damage the stems of plants in winter.
5. 5 Use a new mulch every year. You need to renew the layer of mulch around the hydrangeas every year to keep it always fresh.
   • Don't just stack the new mulch on top of the old one - use a garden pitchfork, a shovel or a rake to loosen and turn the old mulch. This will prevent the mulch from over-compacting, which limits the penetration of water and air.
   • Add new mulch to old mulch so that the total thickness is 8-13 centimeters.
6. 6 After mulching, remember to water the hydrangeas more thoroughly than usual. Remember that hydrangeas require a little more water after mulching, as the thick layer of mulch will absorb some water before it reaches the roots. To prevent the roots from drying out, water the plants with more water than usual.

Tips

• You can use mulch types such as well-rotted manure, compost, shredded bark, leaf humus, seaweed, newspaper shreds, peanut or pecan skins, sawdust, and hop pellets (waste from the brewing industry).
• Some experts recommend avoiding the use of cut grass as mulch as it can clump together and form a water barrier.
• Some types of mulch are not as successful at suppressing weed growth (especially pine straw), and some (buckwheat husks) can be blown away by the wind (this is especially true for those who live in windy areas).