Mulching

Mulching. I really can't say that I like to do it. It is a great help to a garden and I would highly recommend it, but it is really hard work. My sister and I weeded and mulched about five rows in our garden and it was tough going. The "hard" part was just moving the mulch to the garden.

We have a mulch pile that we load into the wheelbarrow by shovelfuls and move into the garden, where we scoop it out to place around our plants.

The mulch has been aging for about a year and it looks rich. By all accounts it is a good thing to do for garden plants. I must tell you it isn't the most pleasant task, however, after it is completed you do have some undeniable benefits.

One, as I mentioned, the soil is enriched.

Next, the weeds and grass don't grow up around the plants nearly as bad.

Plus, the soil stays cooler in the really hot summer days.

And, moisture is retained in the soil and the plants don't suffer as much from dry days.

I hate to complain, but did I mention it is really hard work? I know I will be glad we did it when we reap the benefits but right now -- I am sure it is one of those times -- you know, the times when it is over, you forget how unpleasant it was, but right now it is pretty rough. Ask me tomorrow and I will probably think differently -- when the garden is finally all mulched and pretty with no weeds and sufficiently watered.