Stay Put Mulch!

It's another windy day here in southeast New MExico. I think the south plains has got to be the windiest place I've ever lived. Seriously a 30mph wind here is just an aggravating think while the locals call a 50mph wind a tough breeze hehe.
So with that in mind has anyone found a good mulch here that the wind cannot blow away easily? I'm still experimenting and this year I'm thinking of trying the larger pine bark chips. Gotta find something to keep Mel's Mix in the box and off the ground. thanks for any help folks.

Well to start..my back garden is surrounded by a 5 foot high cinder block wall. You'd think that would be enough right? Since my yard is new I've got plans, but the money comes a little at a time so....it's a bag of pine bark to try this time. My neighborhood has those darn "keep it from being an eyesore rules," so keeping the neighbors off my back has to be a priority too. Eventually I want to put the allowed 2 foot wrought iron extention on the wall to make it 7 feet tall and I'll find some creeping vines to weave in and fill the holes.
Not sure exactly what the local gardeners do. I'd talk to them more, but we're an oilfield town so my days off don't match up with the "townies" as we call them. I'm off when they're at work. I'll eventually have some shrubs and windbreak walls in the back garden. It's just going to take some time.

Tehe....I wasn't suggesting you use a car on blocks to block the wind. Just something like a lattice. Spray painting "bite me neighborhood ass'n" is totally optional.

Deborah ....maybe I should rethink putting my name on this.

Lavender Debs wrote:Tehe....Spray painting "bite me neighborhood ass'n" is totally optional.

Bwahahah I love it! Oh how I wish sometimes I could do something like that. I used to live out in the sticks with no neighbors so gardening was freeform work. Considering the finicky whims of the neighbors is definitely a different experience.
Oh yes I plan on doing some trellice work as I'd like to separate the garden into some outdoor rooms. Right inside the gate is where the bicycles and such are kept. I'd like to put up a decorative fence there. We plan on having a pool so that area will have it's own theme. I'll have a deck or sunroom and patio right off the back of the house. there's an area on the east side of my house that only gets a few hours of sun so the compost bins and a shade garden will go over there. That's also the side where all the water from my backyard goes so I have some trenches and drainpiping to install so the water can get under the wall and out to the street. I've got part of that done up front and it looks like a little stream bed.
My raised beds will be a combination of 2x8 foot and 4x8 foot beds. I just need to get all this drawn out on paper so I know what to put where. Ah the joys of a clean slate!

We've always used the shredded cedar mulch and it works great. It's not chips, but completely shredded so the fibers really mesh together and create a great blanket to help keep the heat and wind from doing a number on the soil. I've used it for the last 12 years - just put a fresh new layer in the front flower bed yesterday. Love the stuff!

jjphoto wrote:We've always used the shredded cedar mulch and it works great. It's not chips, but completely shredded so the fibers really mesh together and create a great blanket to help keep the heat and wind from doing a number on the soil. I've used it for the last 12 years - just put a fresh new layer in the front flower bed yesterday. Love the stuff!

I do the same. We get crazy wind in the Dallas area in April. The neighbor across the alley has a Texas flag flying in his backyard just inside his fence and it is beginning to tatter after only 2 years. My back yard is on the north side of the house and the winds tend to be either straight line types east to west or west to east. One day the neighbor's flag is flapping one direction, the next day the opposite direction. I've found that the shredded mulches bind together better. I wouldn't even consider using pine bark because it's too light and chuncky - meaning a larger surface area for the wind to catch.

I did a bit of Googling regarding shredded red cedar mulch, come to find out most sites say that this stuff is a good deterent for termites. I'm thinking about using it around my trees and on my walkways in my garden which is right next to my house. Does this sound like a good idea to you? Does anyone know whether this stuff ever becomes malodorous?

I've been calling around a bit and haven't been able to locate this stuff, does anyone know where I can buy shredded red cedar mulch?

Ages wrote:I did a bit of Googling regarding shredded red cedar mulch, come to find out most sites say that this stuff is a good deterent for termites. Does anyone know whether this stuff ever becomes malodorous?

I've been calling around a bit and haven't been able to locate this stuff, does anyone know where I can buy shredded red cedar mulch?

The cedar mulch will not become stinky, but I much prefer No Float Cypress Mulch (that is the brand name). It stays in place, won't float in heavy rainstorms and is also very slow to deteriorate. I get mine at Home Depot for around $2.39 for 2 CF. They also have cedar mulch but it didn't look as well shredded to me.

Does the "No Float" stuff stay down in high wind?

I'd say so if it's anything like what they sell around here. I'm a nursery junkie and visit every nursery within an 8 county area and it's amazing how different the products range from place to place.

I've been doing a lot of research about mulching but haven't learned much for my efforts. I have two main questions about mulching in a SFG:
1. If your box is built with 2x6 lumber, filled with Mel's Mix and includes the "regulation" grids, where is there any room for the recommended 2 to 4 inch depth of mulch?
2. Assuming that Question #1 is resolved, how do you keep the stuff from getting mixed in with your Mel's Mix?

So far, the only solution I've come up with can be seen in the following post:

https://squarefoot.forumotion.com/southwestern-deserts-f17/what-to-use-for-mulch-in-south-west-desert-t1614.htm#11316

SirTravers wrote:Well to start..my back garden is surrounded by a 5 foot high cinder block wall. You'd think that would be enough right?

Hi! That may be part of your problem. It can be pretty windy here and the advice is to have fencing with at least (if I recall correctly) 10% of spacing. Otherwise the wind hits the barrier, can't go through at all and whips over the top and down. So it would be good to put some trellis on the top of the wall, then the wind should be more likely to carry on over.

I filled my boxes with mixture yesterday and then covered them with agricultural fleece to stop the stuff blowing away before the plants grow. In my case it keeps them warmer (not a problem for you probably) but it also reduces evaporation so less watering The fleece is cheap even here so shouldn't break the budget, you just need to slacken it as things grow and then take it away later.