Mulching Around the Farm
The weather here in the Northeast has been unusually mild for this time of year. This week, temperatures are hovering in the 40s and 50s, and some of the spring-blooming bulbs are already beginning to poke through the soil.
Around my Bedford, New York farm, the outdoor grounds crew is adding a little more protection around the growing bulbs to keep them insulated against cold snaps and drying winds - after all, we still have several more weeks of winter. They’re adding a layer of mulch to various tree pits and along my daffodil border. If you’re seeing some early growth around your garden, don’t worry too much - hardy and adaptable spring-blooming bulbs are quite resilient.
Enjoy these photos and tips.
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- I started developing my long daffodil border more than a decade ago, during the first years of my farm ownership. Since then, I’ve expanded the collection, and after lots of careful planning and planting, the border now extends the length of one side of my farm, from the summer house, past the stable and down to the Japanese maple grove. With such mild temperatures this season, some of the daffodil leaves are beginning to grow through the soil.
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- Here is a daffodil bulb before it was planted last fall. A bulb has five major parts: a basal plate, scale leaves, protective tunic, a flowering shoot, and lateral buds. During the winter months, roots emerge to penetrate the soil and develop.
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- Here is a daffodil bulb placed several inches into the soil – with the pointed end facing up. The shoot slowly grows upwards within the bulb, eventually developing into a stem.
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- In the spring, the leaves are the first to break through the soil. Then approximately one month later, the flowering shoot begins to appear. We are still a few weeks away from the start of spring, but these leaves are already coming through.
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- Here is another patch of daffodil bulb leaves. Because of the early growth, I wanted the beds topped with a layer of mulch to keep them protected from any abrupt weather changes. The flowering shoots still need time to develop. A cold snap may cause them to yellow a bit, but the bulb should send up new growth once temperatures warm up consistently.
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- Fortunately, I am able to make lots of mulch, and compost, right here at my farm. During the course of the year, my outdoor grounds crew amasses large amounts of organic debris – felled trees, branches, leaves, etc., but none of the material goes to waste. It is either repurposed quickly as milled lumber or made into mulch and compost.
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- Here’s Phurba taking another wheelbarrow of mulch to the bed. Winter is also a good time to mulch beds because the ground is still frozen.
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- Do you know the difference between compost and mulch? Compost is organic matter that has been decomposed over time, while mulch is the layer of organic materials used as a protective cover.
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- Phurba spreads a two to three-inch layer of mulch over the area. In time, the mulch will also help to suppress weed germination, retain moisture, and insulate the soil.
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- With this organic mulch, heavy soils are better equipped to hold water and resist compaction – reducing erosion and runoff. It looks great with a fresh layer of mulch.
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- Meanwhile, nearby, Fernando carries a bale of hay, also made right here at the farm, and drops it strategically where rain runoff may cause damage to the lawns and garden beds. We’re expecting some rain this week.
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- Redirecting the water will help keep the gravel on the carriage road and off the beds.
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- Here’s Pete putting down another bale where rains tend to flow into this bed of pachysandra.
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- More mulching is done at the majestic Pin Oak Allee. These trees are underplanted with a variety of Narcissi named after me by Van Engelen Inc., a wholesale flower bulb company in Bantam, Connecticut. Narcissus ‘Martha Stewart’ is a Karel van der Veek hybrid with a three-inch white perianth surrounding a pale yellow cup edged in a thick band of frilly apricot-pink.
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- Here is the other side of the allee. I will share photos of the lovely Narcissus ‘Martha Stewart’ once they bloom in spring.
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- The crew works as a team – transporting the mulch from the field, dropping the mulch in various areas, and spreading it evenly under and around the trees. Here is Phurba dropping more mulch under the weeping willows, where there are more Narcissus ‘Martha Stewart’ bulbs planted.
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- Here is Chhiring mulching the pit of this handsome Bloodgood London plane tree. This is a vigorous-growing variety with a very uniform branching habit. It also has large, maple-like bright-green leaves that turn a bronzy yellowish-gold in the fall.
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- Other spring-blooming bulbs are planted under the Miss Kim Korean lilacs. Mulch varies in composition, but it is most commonly made from organic material such as leaves, wood chips, grass clippings, peat moss, pine straw, or bark chips – I love the rich brown color.
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- Phurba spreads the mulch evenly by hand, making sure the layer is not too thick.
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- When mulching tree pits, be sure to pull the mulch away from the base of the tree trunk and not up against the trunk.
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- Too much mulch will suffocate and kill the tree. Remember, “bare to the flare”, which means nothing should ever be above the tree’s flare – the point where the tree stops widening at the bottom.
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- Snowdrops are already up under the Gravenstein apple trees. Snowdrops, Galanthus, produce one very small pendulous bell-shaped white flower which hangs off its stalk like a “drop” before opening.
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- The flowers cannot be covered, but the crew is able to mulch around them, giving them a fresh and finished look.
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- Using mulch around the farm is a wonderful way to beautify the gardens and to give back to the earth. I’m glad we are getting the mulch down now – temperatures may dip down to the 30s this weekend. What early signs of spring are popping up where you live? Share your comments below – I love hearing from you on my blog.
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