How do you mulch your squares?

With a whole range of materials! A few things we use:

• Carpet squares turned upside down, with holes cut for the plants
• Newspaper with grass clippings or other material on top
• Cedar mulch or other pre-packaged wood mulch from the garden center
• Free wood chips from tree-trimming companies or the city trimmers
• Straw (Hay has seeds! Don't use that!)
• Shredded paper (reuse that junk mail!)
• Compost, half-finished compost, crumbly decomposting shredded leaves
• Red plastic (under tomatoes and strawberries-- increases the harvest!)
• We hear varied reports about the black plastic "weed cloth" stuff. Almost everyone says the thin, cheaper stuff is worthless; some say that the thicker stuff works well, and others say it's not worth the expense.

Entered by Ray_Scheel

        Square Foot Gardening FAQ Page