Mulching My Azaleas
Winter is the best time to cover garden beds with a rich layer of organic mulch.
Last spring, I began planting hundreds of azaleas on both sides of the carriage road leading from my Summer House to my Stable - so far, they're all doing excellently. Recently, I decided to cover the grass surrounding these plants with old burlap and mulch. Mulched areas help prevent the growth of weeds and cuts down on watering and mowing. Fortunately, we are able to make lots of mulch, and compost, right here at my farm. The new layer of mulch has transformed these azalea gardens and they look great.
Enjoy these photos.
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- I began this azalea project in April of 2021 with the planting of these white azaleas just outside my Summer House garden.
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- They were followed by more azaleas in different shades of pink.
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- These azaleas grew beautifully all summer and I continued to add more on both sides of this carriage road, ending with specimens in yellow and orange.
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- These plants are now dormant – many without their leaves. This winter’s weather has been very erratic. Some days have been bitterly cold and others mild and spring like.
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- When I planned this garden, I knew I wanted to eventually mulch the entire area, so this week, my outdoor grounds crew took on this task.
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- Any old burlap no longer suitable for covering boxwood for winter was taken out and repurposed.
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- The burlap was unrolled and placed around the azaleas and area trees.
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- Holes were made where the azaleas were planted.
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- And where there were no plants, the burlap was positioned in long swaths following the shapes of the tree pits.
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- Here’s Chhiring unloading the mulch from the dump truck, so it can be transported in wheelbarrows to various areas. Do you know the difference between compost and mulch? Compost is organic matter that has been decomposed over time, while mulch is the layer of organic materials used as a protective cover. This mulch is made right here at my farm from downed trees that have been put through the tub grinder multiple times.
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- Each wheelbarrow is filled with mulch and then walked to a designated place in the garden. The crew works efficiently in a production line process.
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- The mulch is then dropped in mounds and spread evenly throughout the space. Spreading a two to three inch layer of mulch will suppress weed germination, retain moisture, and insulate the soil.
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- During the course of the year, my outdoor grounds crew amasses large amounts of organic debris – felled trees, branches, leaves, etc., but none of the material goes to waste. It is either repurposed quickly as milled lumber and wood chips, or made into mulch and compost.
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- Chhiring uses a hard rake to spread the mulch and break up any clumps that are still frozen.
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- Working from another side, Phurba uses a soft rake to even the mulch nicely around the plantings, making sure every bit of burlap is covered.
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- Once an area is complete, it looks so pretty.
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- With this organic mulch, heavy soils are better equipped to hold water and resist compaction – reducing erosion and runoff. There is still some snow left over from a previous storm, but on this day, temperatures rose to almost 60-degrees Fahrenheit – there was a lot of melting everywhere.
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- Remember, when mulching tree pits, be sure to pull the mulch away from the base of the tree trunk and not up against the trunk.
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- Using mulch around the farm is a wonderful way to beautify the gardens and to give back to the earth. It all looks great – I can’t wait to see these azaleas bloom again.
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- And it won’t be long now – look, there are already signs of spring buds on some of these plants. I will be sure to share many more photos of my azaleas when they flower this year – stay tuned.
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