Should I mulch - if so what with?

[Milkysallgone]

I have a bed in the front garden which I am slowly starting to plant things in. I have a row of Rudbeckias across the back (against path) and a semi circular bit at one end which I have put a few heathers in and some Gypsophilia. Need to get some more plants, not sure what yet though? I've been out today and pulled out a load more weed seedlings. So- should I mulch it? If so what's best bearing in mind what's in it?

Thanks in advance

Well I have just bark chipped loads of mine. I had cleard a lot of old shrubs and brambles etc and want to keep them weed free whilst I decide what to put in. I can get 2 big sacks for £8 and that does 3m x 1m. No weeds yet and it has been down about 4 weeks.
HTH

I use fine composted bark on the flower garden -- looks nicer than bark chippings IMHO.

And am using grass clippings on the veg.

I use composted bark as a mulch/soil improver. Reminds me .... I must go and dig out the compost heap ....

Thank you

sophy - compsted bark sounds good, is it expensive? I assume it is finer than the big chunks in the bags of bark?

Would it do for a veg plot? I have hoed at least 4 onions trying to keep the weeds down

PKay now I'm going to sound really thick but:How do you actually use a hoe to weed? I've got one, but am not quite sure what to do with it!

Okay - duh!

Depends what type you've got. Some are 'push' hoes and some are 'pull' hoes.

If your hoe looks like a letter D on a straight stick (with the stick attached to the curved side), it'll probably work best if you push the hoe away from you, across the soil, in fairly short jabbing movements. That should cut the weeds off at ground level but go gently so you don't decapitate the friendly plants!

The other type of hoe has a blade which is semi-circular or oblong, attached to the pole by a (sort of) s-shaped piece of metal. With this type of hoe I find it easier to pull the hoe towards me, as otherwise it's less easy to see where it's going and so I want to be sure I haven't sliced off any cherished plants.

Does that make any sense at all?

Sorry to hi-jack, but whilst on the subject of mulch... what could I use to put on a cleared bed that cat's won't use as a litter tray? Totally fed up of stench of sun-baked cat poo in my garden!!

Callme, I buy my composted bark in bulk from these people.

I think it is a bit pricey to use on veg garden -- I put down thick layer of normal compost around plants which makes hoeing between them easier. And am also trying glass clippings as mulch between rows for first time.

I will try grass clippings but as we only seeded the lawn a few weeks ago it won't produce much yet

On the vexed question of cat poo ... It's the clear space which attracts them so the best option might be to plant something there - cheap bedding plants, maybe? - just to fill and protect the space. Or do you have any large spiky shrubs, such as holly or berberis, in the garden? I keep squirrels off pots of bulbs with short and spiky cuttings of holly, but that obviously wouldn't be suitable if the bed is somewhere where small children could stumble into it.

This factsheet has a few other suggestions. www.bbc.co.uk/threecounties/read_this/gardening/fact_sheet_twenty_one.shtml. The lion dung is advertised mail order in several gardening magazines. I used cocoa mulch a few years ago (not specifically to deter cats) and it smelt gorgeous but tended to blow around the garden on windy days.

Thanks MadBad. The bed was prepared for veg seedlings in early spring, and OVERNIGHT it turned into the local kitty litter tray! The buggers dug everything up - and even got into the mini poly-tunnel to have a lovely dump amongst my beetroot and carrots!
Currently patch is covered in polyethene sheet and flower pots. Am certainly going to check out the lion poo!

Just be a bit careful about the amount of grass clippings used as mulch - if you get too much of a layer and its still damp it can start generating temperatures that will kill all of the plants as well as stopping weeds. We have a shredder and do our own shredded bark for flower borders - and tends to be too prickly for cats to be comfortable with.