While mulching your trees can protect the health of your soil, many gardeners tend to veer into over-mulching territory, costing them time, energy, resources, and in many cases, the very trees they were trying to nourish. One Reddit user who shared their desire to learn more about mulching on the r/arborists subreddit received helpful feedback about the line between "just enough" and "too much."
"You should scoop back the mulch 3-5 inches from the trunk, and it looks like the root flare is buried either by mulch or by dirt," one user commented.
When mulch covers the root flare — the structural roots at the base of the tree, visible above ground — it prevents oxygen from reaching the roots and can even trap moisture against the bark, causing the tree to rot and eventually die.
This particular user also wanted to plant a hosta bed in the mulch around the tree, but commenters discouraged the idea, explaining that planting more roots would create a breeding ground for overcrowding and disaster.
"Any sort of plant that is planted directly on top of the roots/root flare like that will compete with the tree for water/nutrients, as you can see," one commenter wrote. "Would not recommend."
As a general rule, less is more when it comes to mulching. You don't need too many expensive gardening products, either; grass clippings or even the compost you have can all serve as mulch.
To keep your garden low-maintenance and thriving, you can try opting for native plants, which are naturally suited to your local environment and accordingly require minimal external interference. You can save water and time by rewilding your lawn — that is, scrapping your existing monoculture grass to allow natural species to overtake the soil — or by manually installing eco-friendly plants to the degree that you're able. Even a partial replacement can go a long way in attracting pollinators and keeping your garden self-sufficient and flourishing.
"Mulch should not be touching the bark," one Reddit user said. "~3 inches of space between mulch and the tree stem."
"It would be helpful to carefully dig down and expose the root flare and then put the mulch back," another suggested.
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