When maximizing your garden’s potential, there are seemingly infinite tips, tricks, and techniques to consider, many of which relate to your immediate environment. However, amid all of the recommendations, there are a few rules that are considered universally helpful for all types of gardeners, such as creating the perfect mixture to rear your plants in. Oftentimes, the process of building your garden begins with finding and implementing the proper soil and/or mulch combination. While most people are familiar with the how-to’s surrounding soil, you may not have heard of mulch. Or perhaps you have heard of mulch in Charlotte NC, but haven’t done much, if any, research into how it works.
Thanks to its numerous benefits, gardening is a hobby that has managed to sustain its appeal for generations upon generations of people. From helping them save money on their favorite produce, to positively contributing to the local ecosystem, what’s not to love about gardening? And regardless of where you fall on the spectrum, be it as an expert or a beginner, all green thumbs aspire to have a healthy and flourishing garden to call their own.
In this article, we’ll catch you up to speed by defining what mulch is, and more specifically, whether you should be using bulk mulch versus bagged mulch in your personal garden. By the time you’ve finished, you’ll have gotten yourself one step closer to actualizing the vibrant garden of your dreams.
What Exactly is Mulch?
In terms of gardening and farming, mulch is a material that, when spread over the soil, can provide insulation and protection for crops and plant life. Mulch comes in many forms but is typically classified as either organic or inorganic. Given its ability to biodegrade, and provide nutrients for plants, many people tend to prefer organic mulch which is comprised of once-living materials. On the contrary, inorganic mulch (rocks, gravel, plastic sheeting, etc.) can still provide gardeners with many benefits, however, unlike organic mulch, it does not dissolve over time, nor does it lubricate soil with extra nutrients. Given the diversity of mulch, sometimes it is used strictly for pragmatic purposes, and sometimes for visual ones like covering downtrodden areas of one’s landscape. Nevertheless, for the purpose of gardening, organic mulches tend to be the more popular choice.
Mulch, whether it’s classified as inorganic or organic, comes in a wide variety of types and designs. You can add a lot of dimension and depth to your garden or landscape, just by choosing mulch of a certain color or texture. Moreover, mulch can range from inexpensive to pricey, depending on its quality. Fortunately, there are tons of affordable mulch options available, that will help cultivate a wonderful garden, without having to break the bank. While mulch might seem like yet another expense when setting up your garden, if you choose the proper variety, it has numerous benefits that well outweigh its initial price. It can insulate, protect, and condition your lawn or garden with lots of nutrients. Mulch also tends to reduce weed growth and helps your plants establish deeper and stronger root systems. All in all, mulch is usually a good investment for gardeners.
Bagged Mulch versus Bulk Mulch: Which is Better?
When comparing and contrasting mulch, many tend to think in terms of inorganic versus organic, however, another important consideration comes in the form of understanding the differences between bagged and bulk mulch. In this section, we’ll explain what these two terms mean, and how they stack up against each other comparatively.
While the terms inorganic versus organic deal with the type of mulch you buy, bagged versus bulk boils down to how much of it you buy. The terms are pretty self-explanatory, but for the sake of understanding, bagged mulch refers to buying product in sections, or by the bag. Whereas bulk refers to purchasing a large amount of product in one singular transaction. Is one option universally better than the other? Not necessarily. However, for the sake of helping you decide on an option, we’ll outline the benefits and drawbacks of both types.
Buying in Bulk: The Positives: Far and beyond, the biggest reason many prefer to buy in bulk is financial. It is generally less expensive to buy in bulk, rather than by the bag. In some cases, you can save as much as $40 per cubic feet of mulch, depending on pricing in your area. Rarely will you find a bagged variety that is cheaper. Other benefits include less packaging waste, due to not having to bag individually. Also, depending on whom you buy from, many Charlotte NC landscape suppliers and nurseries will offer to deliver bulk mulch, saving you both time and money.
Buying in Bulk: The Negatives: If you’re going to buy in bulk, and cannot have it delivered, you will be responsible for its transport. Generally, this will require the use of a truck or trailer to accomplish, which not everyone has easy access to. Furthermore, once you get it on your property, it will not be as easy to transfer to your garden beds as the bagged variety. In most cases, you’ll need the assistance of a wheelbarrow or something comparable.
Buying Bagged: The Positives: On the contrary, the biggest incentive for buying bags is to experience the convenience of transportation. You can use just about any vehicle to transport and deliver bags of mulch. Moreover, you won’t have to use a wheelbarrow once you get your mulch to its destination. This is better for sloped properties, or hard-to-reach garden beds. Across the board, bulk mulch is cheaper, however, on occasion, you will come across sales on bagged mulch that make their pricing equitable. Just make sure you’ve done the proper math to verify you’re getting the necessary amount of mulch to make the sale actually worth it.
Buying Bagged: The Negatives: Once again, pricing is the biggest downside to buying bagged. If your landscaping or gardening project is particularly large, buying bulk will be the way to go from a financial standpoint. Also, bagged mulch tends to create more waste, and thus more cleanup.
Bagged Versus Bulk: The Verdict
In the end, it all depends on the parameters of the project. Ask yourself the following questions, how much mulch do I need? Do I have the proper transportation to accommodate that amount? If buying in large quantities, can I get the mulch delivered? What is my budget? Generally, the main takeaway is that bulk mulch is the cheaper option but will often require planning for transportation. Whereas bags are easy to transport but can get very pricey depending on the size of the project. In most cases, the choice will tend to make itself, based on the size of the project and what transportation you have available.
To learn more about our high-quality materials and explore our wide range of landscape supply, visit our website at https://andolinamaterials.com or give us a call today at (704) 882-1610. Andolina Materials is here to assist you with all your material needs!
