For this week’s Greener Living Tips, I want to discuss one of the ways that I save money around my year this later season of the year, and this is by making my own mulch! I invested in a blower/mulching device, and the mulch you see is mulched leaves, bark, and sticks found around my yard earlier this month, and it looks just like the bark mulch shreds previously purchased at Lowe’s!
I saved $60.00 by making my own mulch for just 1/4 of my flower beds in the front of my home! So, by using just these two methods I save more than $120.00 around my yard annually, and that money can be channeled back into other projects, such as my Indoor Greenhouse system!
Using leaf mulch helps your lawn to be able to:
- Mulching leaves enhance landscape aesthetics during Fall.
- Organic mulch improves soil fertility as it decomposes, reducing the need for fertilizers.
- Leaf mulch help maintain soil moisture by reducing evaporation so less supplemental irrigation is needed.
- Leaf mulch inhibits weed germination and growth, reducing the need for herbicides.
- Leaf mulch buffers soil temperatures over the winter, keeping soils warmer in the winter.
And the best part? Leaf mulch can be made by simply mowing over leaves, and raking up the debris and using the newly made mulch around all of your flower beds, potted plants, and trees in your yard. This same process would be an awesome “brown” layer to compost bins. I also use this mulch as an aromatic layer for my outdoor patio chimineas, fire pits, and smoker. If you don’t have a shredder, don’t worry. Leaves can be shredded using the lawn mower. Just be sure to avoid “volcano mulching.” When mulch is piled against the base of a tree, it holds moisture, encouraging rot in the trunk. Mulch piled against the trunks of young trees may also create a habitat for rodents that chew the tender bark and can ultimately kill the trees.
This is an awesome way to save this holiday season! So friends, if you have any tips for reducing your end-of-season yard waste at home, I’d love to hear about it below!