It’s spring, and we’re all out making our homes look great. On behalf of your trees, both street trees and those around your home, PLEASE don’t put overdo the mulch.

New trees may benefit from a few inches of mulch over the dirt of the hole for your tree, but mature trees don’t need any more than a total of 1”, and that is primarily to keep the mowers and weed whippers away from the tree trunk. NO tree needs or wants mulch up on its trunk.

Putting mulch up on the trunk as many people and even some professional landscapers will do, traps moisture on the trunk, leading to disease and even premature death. Keep the mulch at least 6” away from the trunk so the root collar/flange can get air. Speaking of mulch, please use natural wood mulch, not rock or rubber.

Rock traps heat that can bake the roots near the surface, which is where important air, water and nutrient fibrous roots are. Rubber mulch won’t decay as natural mulch does, so the ground won’t be renourished with the materials stored in the wood mulch. The basic purpose of mulch is to help the trees and shrubs, so go natural, and go lean with it, as you would find in nature.