Mulches Pros and Cons - organic - I missed a few!

Wups, I wrote about organic mulches last week, and I lost a couple of them!! Thanks to all the allotment holders out there, who yelled and screamed at me for missing them out... *laughs*

In my opinion,  these are not really mulches in themselves, they are more suited to the allotment, where appearance doesn't matter: but there is a school of thought which says that they can be used direct on the soil, under a "proper" mulch, to suppress weeds and to enrich the soil.

1) Newspaper

Spread it out in a thick layer, water it well, until it is absolutely soaking wet, then fling your organic mulch on top.

In time, it will rot down, thus enriching the soil, having suppressed weeds in the meantime. Cheap, quick, and very much "no dig". Which means you can't easily plant anything for a year or two, until it has done its work. 

This could work if you have inherited a large garden, part of which is infested with weeds: you can use one of these materials to keep it under control until such time as you are ready to turn it into a proper garden.

It's important to use only black-print newspaper: coloured inks contain chemicals which are not good for the garden. Also, when people say "newspaper", they do mean "newspaper", not "glossy magazines"... because glossy paper will take a long time to rot properly. Plus, glossy magazines are usually highly coloured!

Good points: cheap, quick to apply.

Bad points: not amenable to planting: and if the newspaper dries out, it won't rot...

2) Brown paper

Very much as above: just make sure it's the fluffy stuff, not the shiny stuff, because shiny paper will take a lot longer to rot down.

Good points: as above:

Bad points: as above 

3) Cardboard boxes 

This is very much the heavy-duty version of the two paper options! Again, it's essential to get them good and wet before you put the mulch on top, otherwise they won't rot.

There is an additional problem with using cardboard boxes: many of them are constructed from several layers, glued together for strength, and the glues can contain heavy metals. Not good for the garden! Anything with corrugated card in it will contain glues, and should be avoided. 

It is also a good idea to remove all sticky labels, before you start...

Good points: as above:

Bad points: as above

There, are we all happy now? *laughs*

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