How to Mulch Trees on Sloping Ground

Gather mulch materials around your landscape such as rocks for contributing a seamless look to your landscape.

Sloping ground presents numerous problems for gardeners. Fertilizer, water and mulch can find their way tumbling down the hill. Mulch is especially important to keep around trees, because it helps keep weeds at bay, and locks in soil moisture. Seedlings have a tough time establishing when surrounded by weeds and given little water. By keeping mulch around your seedlings and older trees, you can prevent weeds from competing with the trees for the soil's nutrients.

Things You'll Need

• Shovel
• Landscaping fabric
• Scissors
• Landscaping pins
• Inorganic mulch

Instructions

1. Remove any weeds surrounding your trees by pressing a shovel 3 inches from the base of the weed and 6 inches down to push the weed up from underneath. Wet the area to make removing weed roots easier.

2. Lay a piece of landscaping fabric down next to the tree. Cut a piece of fabric, so that it extends 2 feet from the dripline of the tree. The dripline of the tree is area that is directly underneath its outermost branches. Make a cut from the center of the fabric that extends to the edges, as if you were creating a Christmas tree skirt to fit around the tree. The landscaping fabric will prevent weed growth and weed seed germination.

3. Secure the landscaping fabric with landscaping pins around the perimeters. Press a pin every 6 inches to secure the landscaping fabric to the soil.

4. Spread 1 to 1.5 inches of inorganic mulch such as rocks, gravel or glass over the landscaping fabric. Inorganic mulch will have better staying power than organic mulch like pine needles; however, there are generally large cracks between inorganic materials that allow sunlight through and water evaporation, which is why it is better to use with landscaping material.

5. Water the area thoroughly.

Tips & Warnings

• Replenish your inorganic mulch every couple of years and monitor the landscaping fabric for holes caused by pests.

• Avoid using rubber mulch, because contains high levels of zinc, which can kill plants.

References

• High Plains Gardening: Inorganic Mulch
• Grounds-Mag: Landscaping on a Slope
• The Landscaping Design Site: Landscape Fabric