Mulch, mulch and more mulch
It can be a back-breaking job but mulching is a job that is very satisfying to me. Making a shabby area look neat and organized always leaves me with a sense of accomplishment.
Michael gave me an overdue haircut this morning and when I left his salon, I took a detour through a neighborhood that has a lot of pine trees. I was in luck - there was a huge pile on the curb on the first street. I ended up getting three loads and used it to mulch the rose beds outside the fence in front of the house.
After lunch, I made a trip to the landfill to get a load of leaf mulch. Collecting the pine straw isn't that bad but the damp and heavy leaf mulch can be bad on the back. I decided to start in the circular garden and mulch the hydrangea beds.
Before -
and after -
A short break and two Ibuprofins later, I was back at it, completing another bed (there are four in the circular garden) and around the fountain.
I normally can get at least two loads of leaf mulch, sometimes even three, but exhaustion kicked in and my back was killing me, so I called it a day.
Michael made a delicious supper, I took a bath in Epsom salts, and Netflix delivered the latest season of Mad Men. Life is good! Now if I can only get up in the morning...
Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy
Michael gave me an overdue haircut this morning and when I left his salon, I took a detour through a neighborhood that has a lot of pine trees. I was in luck - there was a huge pile on the curb on the first street. I ended up getting three loads and used it to mulch the rose beds outside the fence in front of the house.
After lunch, I made a trip to the landfill to get a load of leaf mulch. Collecting the pine straw isn't that bad but the damp and heavy leaf mulch can be bad on the back. I decided to start in the circular garden and mulch the hydrangea beds.
Before -
and after -
A short break and two Ibuprofins later, I was back at it, completing another bed (there are four in the circular garden) and around the fountain.
I normally can get at least two loads of leaf mulch, sometimes even three, but exhaustion kicked in and my back was killing me, so I called it a day.
Michael made a delicious supper, I took a bath in Epsom salts, and Netflix delivered the latest season of Mad Men. Life is good! Now if I can only get up in the morning...
Comments
It is back breaking work. Just seeing your pictures makes me ache.
I wish you could give The Muscian mulch lessons. LOL He loves to mulch, but I can't tell you how many plants I have to go uncover after he is finished. He's not a gardener and has been known to pull weeds that I had to replant because they were seedlings of mine!
Have a wonderful day!
Could have been more backbraking weeding all summer if you didn't mulch. I know what you mean though, apart from the obvious mulch benefits, it does pull everything together.