A new homeowner turned to Reddit for advice about the alarming decline of a tree in front of their property.
The picture, posted to r/gardening, was accompanied by a caption that explained the tree's predicament after they moved in a year ago: "Looked great in spring, increasingly poor as the year went on. I have put in fertilizer spikes this spring and it gets a deep watering at least once a week as well as lawn sprinkler watering daily. Any advice or suggestions?"
For experienced gardeners perusing the thread, the problem wasn't difficult to identify.
"Its also planted too deep, the root flare/neck should be showing," one comment pointed out.
The key issue impeding the tree's growth is sometimes referred to as a "mulch volcano." As the name implies, it's when mulch is piled high around the base of a tree, resembling the mound of a volcano.
This unfortunately common landscaping practice harms the tree by damaging it at its roots, leading to girdling. This happens when the tree's roots have nowhere left to expand and wrap around the trunk, cutting off water and nutrients and ultimately killing the tree. Mulching is a beneficial gardening practice when it is done correctly and with the right materials. With organic material like bark, leaves, or wood chips, it suppresses weeds and adds moisture to the soil.
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As the earlier comment noted, the issue is with the height of the mulch pile. The University of New Hampshire advises gardeners to use the 3-3-3 rule: a three-inch layer of mulch in a three-foot donut around the tree that leaves three inches between mulch and stem.
Natural techniques like this and using native flora to rewild a yard will yield the best and most cost-effective results. The comments offered some sage advice about moving forward.
One reply on the thread broke down the issue in detail: "This practice, where mulch is piled high against a tree's trunk, can seriously harm and even kill the tree by creating a perpetually moist environment that fosters disease and pests."
One of the responses to that post said, "I killed three trees this way before someone explained what I did."
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