In the last couple of years, I've learned that mulch is essential in my vegetable garden--especially when gardening in containers and most especially in the summer. The dry, hot summers of Southern California will dry out dirt quickly, and mulch can help keep the soil evenly moist and your plants healthy. Mulching also means you don't have to water your plants as heavily or as often.
Summer plants like tomatoes and eggplants don't respond well to fluctuations in soil moisture level. When the soil goes through a cycle of getting wet and drying out completely, your veggies can get blossom end rot. This has happened to me before, and, let me assure you, it's frustrating. Basically, a brownish or grayish spot appears on the end of a fruit as it grows, ruining it. Mulching can help prevent blossom end rot by holding water in the soil when it might otherwise evaporate. I've managed to stop blossom end rot in my vegetables by mulching around the base of my tomatoes and eggplants. This year, I'm doing the same with my squash, which are also known to suffer from blossom end rot.
In terms of what type of mulch to use, there are many options: bark, garden plastic or, my current favorite, hay. They all work fairly well. The nice thing about hay is that I can just turn it into the soil at the end of the season and it should break down quickly. (Plus, I use it as bedding in my chicken coop first.)
That's it for my thoughts on mulching. I have a couple more gardening tips in mind, and I plan to role them out in the next few weeks. Hopefully, at least one reader will find them helpful.
Previously: Tip #1
I dont use anything in my garden that has been pooped on. The hay you are using from your coop has been used as bedding which has been pooped on, right? Rule #1 for mulching and composting is not to use feces. Am I wrong?
Living in Arizona, I can relate to the need for mulching. Summertime here often means a swift death for my poor tomatoes. Looking at your image there, I was wondering if you've experimented at all with the depths of your mulch. A lot of garden primers say something like 3" of straw or other mulch, which seems like an awful lot to me. You seem to only have about an inch there, do you find that that amount works well for you?
Beth, I guess I don't worry so much about the chicken poop issue, considering many organic fertilizers are made from the poop of farm animals (or bats). I definitely put chicken poop in my compost bin and mix it into my soil. It's full of wonderful, plant-enriching nitrogen. For some reason, the idea that I'm putting poop on my garden has never bothered me. I'm curious what other gardeners think.
I think she must be using straw, not hay. Hay is food for animals because it's rich in seeds, which means it is full of future weeds. As for Beth's question: Never put human or pet feces in the garden or compost. Fresh manure from sheep, goats, cows, or horses will generally burn plants, so needs to be composted. Chicken manure would if applied on its own, but mixed in with straw is generally not strong enough to burn plants, but don't put it up around the stem.
Liz, thank you for explaining the differnce between hay and straw. I knew there was one, but every time I called a feed store asking for straw, they'd say, "Do you mean hay?" And when I said, "No straw," they would imply there wasn't a difference. Isn't that odd? You're right, though, it's straw--for bedding, not eating.
I have heard that chicken poop can burn some plants. In fact, I checked the Backyard Chickens message board, and lots of folks use their chicken poop in their garden, although they agree that it can burn more tender plants when applied before its fully broken down in the compost. Happily, I haven't yet had that issue.
I've been mulching this season just like you -- only in my case it's bedding from my neighbor's horse stall. I don't think a bit of bedding will burn the plants -- at least it hasn't so far!
I read on BYC that you got Rhode Island Reds from someplace in LA. I live in LA and am looking for some good Reds. Where, may I ask, did you get Jackie and Lisa?
I'm wondering where you live in SoCal that you are able to have a chicken coop. I'm drooling at the thought of free range chickens and fresh eggs for my family.