If your mulch bed has no plants, make sure to till the spot properly so that the mulch beds allow free circulation of air and moisture into the soil. Once you’ve got your location, it’s time to prepare the soil. 3. River rock is sometimes combined into the soil but is more often used as a top dressing or ornamentation in your outdoor beds. Step 2: Choose A Spot That You Want To Mulch. Combine 1 gallon of white vinegar with 1 cup of rock salt or regular table salt. Certain organic ingredients in garden mulch, such as leaves and straw, can rob the ground of nitrogen. You can even use Epson salt if you have it and its less expensive. First, you need to plan what you will be planting in your garden. Hiring an expert is quite costly than hiring tools or use the ones in your store. Water after mulching — This is an optional step, but a final watering can help settle the mulch into place. Ideally, you should opt for a location that is sunny for at least six hours a day. Three additional re-mulching tips are: • Leave three to six inches between trees and shrubs and mulch. Sod Busting . Answer: If you are planning on planting flowers soon, then it is probably best to plant the flowers first and then mulch; otherwise, it will be more difficult to dig in the mulch to get to the soil level in order to plant the flowers. You should spread your mulch to be two to four inches thick. Make sure you rake the soil so that it is smooth; the mulch will look lumpy if you do not do this. If your mulch is too thin, then weeds can push through. Horticultural grit or some variation is used as an amendment or mulch, as is aquarium gravel. Add 1 tablespoon of dish soap and stir until it is completely blended. Once your garden is prepped and prepared for the mulch, the next measure is the layering. However, when considering how to edge a flower bed, tree or other lawn and landscaping elements, it’s important not to mistake basic for simple or cheap. Ensure the mulch fills up the dug area. Using your hands or a rake, apply new mulch over the existing cultivated mulch or soil. If your mulch is too thin, then weeds can push through. Mulching with the right amount each time will help fend off weeds and conserve moisture, which will reduce your need to irrigate. Plant fall garlic before the ground freezes and mulch well for cold winter areas; you can spring plant garlic, if you forget to do it now, but the bulbs won’t be as big Harvest Brussels sprouts after frost Bring in Mason bee larvae to protect from freezing. This article has been viewed 68,780 times. Remove the bed’s current vegetation—like existing grass or weeds—down to the root. Step 6 Amend the soil with 3 or 4 inches of organic mulch. One exception is if you use pea gravel mulch or inorganic mulch. Decide where the garden bed will go and draw a plan on paper. Fertilisers are spread over mulches in late winter and are washed down to plant roots by rain. Some seeds can be soaked before sowing to decrease germination time, but many seeds are a lot easier to handle and plant dry. The plants you sprayed should be turning yellow. Select a sunny area. Creating a new garden bed can time consuming, but with good planning and some muscle, it’ll be worthwhile. With our step-by-step guide, you can now go ahead and create a mulch bed in your garden. This helps to prevent weeds or other plants from growing. Multiply the rough size of your flower beds by how deep you want to lay your mulch. In an existing bed, amend the soil with composted manure before planting. Mulching offers many advantages to plants, such as keeping the roots moist, preventing soil compaction, adding organic matter, and much more. If you are limited with land, then the spot will determine what will grow there. How many times should I water the seed bed before sowing? The deeper, the better when adding the outdoor succulent soil to your bed. Using a layer of mulch over the soil in your garden is a great way to prevent weeds from infiltrating your plots, regulate temperature during the winter season, and help keep moisture in the soil when you water. Lauren has worked for Aurora, Colorado managing the Water-Wise Garden at Aurora Municipal Center for the Water Conservation Department. Some sources recommend preparing the soil three inches (8 cm.) Turn soil over to a depth of eight inches with a garden spade, fork or roto-tiller, breaking up heavy clods. And, be sure to check out the video How To Prepare And Plant A Flower Bed. 4 Steps To Prepare Your Flowerbeds For Winter #1 Remove All Annual Flowers. Smaller stones improve drainage. These tools will help you to prepare, lift dirt, level the surface, and apply mulch on your bed. There are lots of steps that you can take to prepare you garden beds for spring planting. Then, you could get away with using just 2 inches, Day adds. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/a\/a7\/Prepare-a-New-Garden-Bed-Step-1-Version-2.jpg\/v4-460px-Prepare-a-New-Garden-Bed-Step-1-Version-2.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/a\/a7\/Prepare-a-New-Garden-Bed-Step-1-Version-2.jpg\/aid1412307-v4-728px-Prepare-a-New-Garden-Bed-Step-1-Version-2.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":"728","bigHeight":"546","licensing":"