Hypothetical: You have several plants in ground, paw paw, persimmon, blueberry, muscadine, etc.
You receive 8 inches worth of mulch to apply to the entire garden area for Back to Eden style gardening.
Do you: dig up the plants and raise them 8 inches so the mulch doesn’t “suffocate the trunks.”
Leave the plants and apply the 8 inches of mulch and hope for the best?
I would just pull the mulch back a foot or so from the trunks. My copious mulch (12”+) dumping settles in no time.
like he said. it does settle out/ breakdown fairly quickly. i re apply about 4in. of fresh mulch every spring and have been doing so for 6 yrs now. no need to fertilize anymore and no weeds as long as the mulch is fairly green.
It doesn’t settle into the “craters” around the trees? Which plants are trunk rooters that could possibly benefit from mulch on the trunks?
i just feather it away from the trunk so theres no crater. i make a higher mound around the drip line to funnel water under the tree. also if the mulch is too close to the trunk it will encourage suckers to come up. if you want a hedge of hazels or bush cherries i guess you can put it right against them but you may get bark rot from too much moisture. my rasp/ blackberries i just bury them and the sprouts come right up thru the mulch but im only using 4in.
thanks!
I have never heard that Paul pulls the mulch away from his trees. I have seen several tours and it does not look like he bothers with moving the mulch away. I am not an expert, but I have not cleared the mulch back in the part of my orchard that is in “back to Eden” style. It has been like that for 4 years and I have not had any issues.
Also, if you go in the woods, you will notice that the trees are mulched all the way up to the trunk. It doesn’t seem to bother the trees.
I agree with that assessment @FarmGirl-Z6A, however with the caveat on newer tiny trees that it’s not “natural” for them to have 8 inches of mulch dumped on them all at once. Sure leaf debris in fall will naturally build an organic layer over time but for big trees that definitely would not hurt anything!
No horticulturist with any respect would ever suggest putting mulch next to the trunk. Horticulture 101. They would be laughed out of the industry.
Paul said something similar in the Back to Eden video. He does a lot of things that are frowned on but seems to have worked for him for, what 15 years or so.
Also, I’m not suggesting piling 8 inches of mulch on the trunk of a sapling or any tree for that matter. I was only suggesting that mulch next to the trunk isn’t an issue.
I’m not good about keeping the mulch away from the trunk, even with small trees. Carelessness more than formal practice.
No problems in my area. Emphasis on in my area.
It’s possible that it’s an old wives tale, but more likely something absolutely essential in some places and not hurtful in others.
Learn from my own failed example! While the persimmons and paw paw on your list will love the compost mulch, beware of top-dressing blueberries …unless you have tested the compost’s pH. One spring I spread 6" of compost around my thriving blueberries, imagining them to love it. Instead, they just sat there … their leaves turning more and more yellow over time. I tested the pH of the compost. It was 6.5, way higher than my sawdust-enhanced native soil. After a year of waiting, I finally dug up blueberries and replanted. They very slowly came back to life.
i think if its coarse and not packed down, it wouldnt be a problem. sometimes i get some against the trunks and it stays that way for the season with no issues.
a ring of sulfur under the compost would have fixed that for you. my soils naturally at 5.5 ph but i still put down some sulfur every other spring for the blueberries.
From what I’ve watched of Paul, you’re right. However my impression is that he doesn’t worry about losses either – I.e… Hardiest survive – I’ve seen some evidence that currant like to be mulched over, but that’s only possible exception to conventional wisdom that might be true. Haven’t looked a lot into it… I keep my mulch pulled back for the most part except for currants.
Just what I was thinking and by chance just picked some up today! Good tip for the future. Thanks.
Every plant is different
Mulch may be good
or it may not.
And in the Puget Sound lowlands
It keeps the soil cold and wet.
Not all that helpful for heat loving plants
Rhododendrons may like a bit of mulch
since they’re so shallow rooted.
Here’s from UMass. https://ag.umass.edu/sites/ag.umass.edu/files/fact-sheets/pdf/mulching_fruit.pdf.
I am one of those who habitually do not mulch against the trunks of my trees because I will not remember to remove mulch before winter arrives.
i dont mulch until mid june here for that reason. lets the ground dry and warm up some. the previous years 4in. of mulch is almost gone by the next spring.