When drought conditions reoccur, the tree roots in the mulch suffer, since mulch does not.

Sep 13, Cons. Not easy for planting where you need to dig new holes. Organic mulches, such as grass clippings or shredded leaves, can't reach the soil. Restricts movement beneficial earthworms, insects and fungi. Soil packed underneath loses breathability, which is. Mar 15, When using mulch in your landscape, there is no need for the use of artificial weed barrier such as plastic or landscape fabric. These materials do not work and are not weed barriers.

They are only necessary under stone. That is to prevent the soil from mixing with the stone. When mulch is maintained at an even depth between two and four inches.

Jul 13, Natural organic mulch, such as fallen leaves or pine needles, cannot replenish nutrients in the soil because the fabric acts as a barrier. Without fabric, this type of organic matter would Estimated Reading Time: 9 mins.

The detrimental effects of the superfluous weed barrier fabric under the mulch are many. Studies show that though advertised as porous, landscape fabric doesn’t allow either rainfall or oxygen to enter soil at the same rate as it would were the fabric not there.

In fact, it can cut the rates in half. Never let mulch touch the trunk of the tree. Start the mulch layer on the ground about 4 to 6 inches out from the bottom of the trunk.

The root flare, where the roots begin to enter the ground at the base of the trunk, should be visible after the mulch is spread. Never let the layer of mulch under a tree become deeper than 3 or 4 inches. According to Las Pilitas Nursery, pine trees benefit most from a mulch of chipped redwood, oak, pine or chaparral. 1 Rake under the pine tree in late winter or early spring.

Remove any weeds, Missing: fabric.