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[MadPlanter]

I constantly have to weed many of my potted plants every 2-3 weeks. I would like to slow that process down a bit and cheaply if possible. Is it at all a good idea to mulch a potted plant? What downsides and positive things are there to acknowledge?

Only thing I could think of on the negative side is that it would be easier to over water stuff.

Was thinking big bark chunks might not be best but what about seedless hay or aspen or pine wood shavings like what's used for hampsters.

Any ideas or comments appreciated!

[goldenseeds]

I think that its difficult to advise you on types of mulch since i don't know your climate, but where i live (wet summers and wet winters with some freezing) i have used Cocoa hull, gravel, regular an some lava rock and pine needles.

For all the options mentioned, they work all more or less the same. Maybe the lava rock was a bit better in keeping the weeds down, when it comes to economics i would highly recommend the pine needles since they can be picked up for free also the drainage is pretty good. The cocoa i don't use anymore, it does not look very natural and if your cats or dog eat it it could cause a problem.

The gravel works well, but its not free, so for me the pine needles are the big winner.

Finally you could also consider filling the leftover space in the pots witch small ornamental plans or mosses, it looks more natural and essentially makes small micro gardens.

 

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[MadPlanter]

I do like the moss idea! Not sure how long it would take to get all the pots started up nicely with mosses. Would definitely be something I'll probably experiment with.

Oak leaves and pine needles are certainly not in short supply around here. I guess I'll have to go get some and see how things turn out.

[Roze]

I use coarse sand on top of the soil with good results!

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[nobody]

I use dead fall and cut grass in almost all of my potted plants with great results.

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[New Wisdom]

I put decorative top dressing in my cacti pots. It's just like polished gravel, but when you use this it will slow down water evaporation. Sometimes I use lava rock or normal pea gravel.

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[delta9hippie]

Mulching is fine, but watch out for molds if you heavily mulch. It's good to turn the mulch over, or mix it gently (not too rough because roots might start growing there) on a regular basis. And like you said, watch out for overwatering as mulch helps retain water.

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[Ian Morris]

This was the first year I mulched my potted plants.  I use the leaves that fall for my garden but for the potted plants I found the large pine bark nuggets worked best. 

The biggest reason I used the nuggets was to deter the squirrels from digging in the pots.  Nearly all of my pots that overwintered this year had pecan tree sprouts in the spring!

They also cut down on my watering requirements and I am sure some of the decomposition added nutrients.

+1 for what delta9hippie shared, I did notice recently that the wild dagga had rooted throughout the nuggets.

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