I'm not a fan of mulch. It smells, attracts ants, and doesn't do a thing
for the weed population. Instead, I planted a bunch of lambs ears, thyme,
mint, and oregano in the rose beds. It provides enough cover to hold
moisture in and goes a long way towards keeping weeds out. As for the
voles, I don't have the problem - most of my neighbors have dogs...

"Shiva" wrote in message
s.com...

This topic usually comes up in the fall, but mulch is used for a
number of reasons outside of winter protection, so I'm thinking about
it now.

Reasons for mulching, that I know of:

To retain moisture (cut down on surface evaporation)
To enrich the soil (as it breaks down, and why I do not consider rocks
or rubber to be mulch)
To protect from cold (as in mounding canes for the winter)
To provide a barrier between extant fungus in the soil (mostly from
fallen leaves that are infected) and new growth
To make the bed more pleasing to the eye
To reduce runoff of water for those of us who still handwater.

My problems with mulch:

No matter how thick the pine bark, leaves, or straw, I still have lots
of weeds. And--it provides a perfect hiding place for voles. When it
is deep enough they apparently burrow in and access the roots from
*above* the plant. My decision to use oak leaves was one that meant I
had thicker than usual mulch, this has meant dead roses. The holes are
lined with two inches of permatil (scratchy composite "rock") but
somehow the voles still eat the roots.

What should I do next year? I cannot face doing anything this year, as
I have too much going on. What ever is left alive in the spring will
get the new treatment.

For the weeds, I like Anne's newpaper idea, and actually used it a few
years ago with good results.

For the voles, I don't know. Maybe a layer of permatil on TOP too,
just under the last layer of soil?

Here is the real point of this post:

If you mulch, what do you use and what do you like/dislike about it?

If you don't, tell me the good points. I think I already know the bad,
the worst being that bare ground is, to me, ugly. TIA