Homeowner met with warnings after sharing photos of recent landscaping project: 'You've done a disservice'

Gardening and landscaping may look simple, but they're actually deceptively difficult. Care too little for your plants and soil, and they may dry out. Care too much for them, and they'll likely suffocate. What's the right balance, how hard is it to find, and can you figure it out before killing any greenery in the process?

A recent Reddit post is proof positive of this endlessly confounding puzzle for new gardeners. Posted to the r/arborists page, a user shared two photos of their tree, which appears up to its proverbial neck in mulch.

"Hi all, recently I filled in my tree wells with a soil/compost mix and then came across volcano mulch," the OP wrote. "I filled it in because I could see all the roots exposed. Wondering if I did a disservice to the trees now."

The concept of volcano mulching that the post is referring to is a dangerous technique that, as mentioned earlier, can more or less suffocate your plants and trees. It is not only harmful on multiple levels, but it's actually counterproductive.

Surrounding your trees with too much mulch can merely slow their growth in a best-case scenario, or suffocate and potentially kill them in a worst-case scenario, which can then have far-reaching effects on the local ecosystem.

Not to mention, using so much mulch on one tree is also simply a waste of money.

As far as saving money goes, one way to garden frugally is to install a native plant lawn. A natural lawn can also save you significant money and time on maintenance and can lower water bills as a result. They also create a healthier ecosystem for pollinators, which ultimately benefits everyone, as pollinators protect our food supply. Even a partial lawn replacement can provide these same benefits, too.

As you might expect, commenters warned the OP against ever trying a mulch volcano again.

"[Place the mulch] 3-5 inches away from the trunk of the tree or you'll rot out the base of it," one user wrote.

Another comment was even more direct, responding: "Yes, you've done a disservice. Those roots exposed were never a problem. And now you're suffocating your tree by burying the root flare and promoting rot."

What's the hardest thing about taking care of your yard? Mowing the lawn 🏡 Controlling weeds 🌿 Keeping pests at bay 🐿️ I don't have a yard 🤷 Click your choice to see results and speak your mind.

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