Wood Mulch vs Rubber Mulch: 2 Big Lies They tell You!
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- Äas pĆidĂĄn 15. 07. 2024
- In this wood mulch vs rubber mulch video, we show you the good, the bad and the ugly in mulching, and give you recommendations whether you should use wood mulch for your garden or red rubber mulch. We'll also reveal 2 big lies that the mulch manufacturers tell you, and we'll compare the 2 types of wood mulch vs rubber mulch in water float testing. In this video we are using Vigoro rubber mulch against the NoFloat brand of wood mulch which claims to be a no float mulch. Also, the Vigoro rubber mulch is a recycled tire mulch. we'll also give you Vigoro mulch reviews as we test it.
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When you are mulching garden beds you'll have to decide whether to go economy and get the less expensive $3 per bag home depot mulch made from wood, or if you should buy the recycled rubber mulch made by the Vigoro Mulch Company. Rubber mulching your garden is easy, and many city parks use it for playground mulch because it is environmentally respectful, and they won't have to replace it every year. If they install 6" of Vigoro rubber mulch for example, that will protect kids from a 14 foot drop. these recycled tire products converted into rubber mulch will keep those city parks looking new for years to come.
What is the best mulch to buy?
For your next mulching garden project, try a sampling of wood mulch and some recycled tire rubber mulch, and test both out. See which works best for you, wood mulch vs rubber mulch. Home depot mulch is mostly Vigoro mulch in our area, and NoFloat Mulch, see what they have in your store. - Jak na to + styl
đ Vigoro Red Rubber Mulch 0.8 cu. ft. Cedar homedepot.sjv.io/RBKvN
đ Vigoro Brown Rubber Mulch 0.8 cu. ft. Cedar: homedepot.sjv.io/NZXOV
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đ DWST08450 ToughSystem 2.0 Large Mobile Toolbox: homedepot.sjv.io/z74qr
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đ DWST08165 Toughsystem 2.0 Small Toolbox: homedepot.sjv.io/B6P1y
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đ Garrett Metal Detectors Sifter/Classifier, GAR1650200: amzn.to/3gH5iwC
đ Vigoro Red Mulch 2 cu. ft.Bagged: homedepot.sjv.io/9R255
Wood mulch is meant to decompose and improve the soil for your plants. I have never seen anyone remove it unless they were trying to change the color. Rubber seems like it should be used somewhere you arenât trying to grow plants and improve soil, but even then who knows what happens to those chemicals as they break down. Maybe try pea gravel, itâs more natural and wonât float either.
I would not use rubber mulch in a vegetable garden, but we have had no problems at all with rubber mulch in the front garden.
rubber is better
My son, who has a degree in forestry, gave me a hard time about âmoundingâ mulch around the base of trees. He says that mulch that touches the tree base omits to much heat for the tree roots and can damage the trunk. He says we should just allow a little space.
Yes I hate mounting that's why we pointed it out in the video there's just too much of that going on in our area and it looks ridiculous over time too just gets worse and worse
It also attracts insects. Ants in particular will create nests next to the tree inside the volcano mounds, also, other insects will burow into the wood.
@@jeffostroff But, you didn't say WHY mounding is bad for the tree, and what is mounting? lol
I always thought mounding was like a style thing that people did intentionally, had no idea it was because they didn't take out the past years mulch and compost the damaged and rotting chips
I do it to achieve that look, like you said. I like the mounding look. Why would it be so flat you canât see it. I do agree to leaving some space for the health of the tree.
Back in 2012 I was visiting my Aunt. Was looking at her gardens (sheâs got a lot & flower beds galore), & told her Iâve never seen so shiny & bright red mulch after a year or more. Thatâs when she told me it wasnât wood, but rubber like you are using. She switched to it back in 2008-2009 & hasnât looked back. Itâs now my go to as well; as it really does work well, & sure doesnât float away or compact as easily as wood mulch.
Pretty cool the stuff they come up with, & thx for the vid, as really help out with great knowledge & awesome VIDS!
CheersâđŒ
Thanks for coming back for more Aepek!
The wood mulch wonât float away if you properly drain the water away out of your garden beds. You really shouldnât have that much water puddling by your house foundation.
It really is 3 problems. Our neighborhood has solid coral beneath our surface. One house had to have a crane drop the ball on the coral to break it up before they could form their foundation. Also the cement border around the garden forms a tub wall. also poorly designed and built gutter system overflows a deluge of water into the garden, which we are trying to eliminate.
He has a sagging or poorly designed corner gutter. But he's worried about his mulch. Lulz
@@ianashmore9910 We were waiting for the house to get painted, then finally last week new hurricane impact windows, which has been done, next we are concentrating on the gutters.
In that case, a boat shouldn't float as well as long as you can keep the pond drained of water.
@@ianashmore9910 Thank you so much for your offer to come pay for replacing that gutter system to the tune of over $1000.
I put in a above ground vegetable garden. I placed a vinyl marine sheet underneath it for weeds. 4 years ago and the only tiny weeds that come up are from bird droppings. Weed once a month for like 3 minutes. Got the marine material at fabric store. Itâs used for boat seats. Doesnât mold.
Jeff,
Thanks for putting this video together! Extremely helpful!
Glad it was helpful!
Great video! Iâm starting a flower bed for the first time this year. Iâve been confused as to which mulch to use along with other things đ. This was very helpful!
I can rake my old natural wood mulch onto my lawn and it will become part of the soil. That old wood also helps hold moisture for the grass. I find that using something that does not decompose to be nasty. I want an environmentally healthy yard. But, that is me...
environmentally healthy yard = no yard brah...just concrete the whole yard or synthetic grass:
1. dont have to waste water
2. dont have to add fertilizer to the yard
3. no water + no fertilizer = no growth = no longer need to buy gas to cut the lawn
4. dont have to mulch
5. no treating bugs
6. no treating fungus
7...so on
This was fantastic info. Thank you!
Glad it was helpful!
I'm 72 and love game changers. This is the one I needed! Very good explaining the things we needed to know! Thx.
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I lived in Houston for many years, and it rains A LOT. But the soil is sandy loam, so it drained very well. I got regular mulch when I bought my first house, and almost all of it floated away with the first big rain storm. I switched to the no-float cypress mulch, and while I lost some with each storm, almost all of it stayed put, I guess because of the good drainage. Then I retired and moved to central Texas. The climate is hot and dry, and my soil has a lot of clay, but the yard is sloped so that drainage is still good. I switched to rubber mulch. As far as weed prevention, I would get some weeds with both types of mulch, but a lot less than not having mulch in my beds.
Yes people are honestly think that mulch will kill every weed out there because they all quote the same useless scientific fact that it blocks the photosynthesis. But the fact of the matter is there is many weeds that don't need a lot of sunlight at all in order to thrive my yard is a testament to that. So you could put 6 inches of mulch in and still have weeds that had have hydroponic properties and just grow right out of the middle of that stuff
Dude thank you Iâm new to this and this helped a lot
Glad to hear it!
Our son has rubber pine straw that was there from the previous owner and it works and looks fine. I'm not into the red coloration, so I will look for the dark brown or black rubber mulch.
We are working on an update video for this week to answer questions that came in and topics related to pros and cons of both mulches
Just did a makeover this weekend and did pay more for the rubber mulch and glad to see that even at 12 years, there's still color
Yes this lasts a good long time
The wood mulch looks good when faded. Rubber mulch is nasty stuff.
I watched this last week for the first time, then I immediately went out and purchased 2 yards of the rubber mulch. I am so glad you decided to post this short video.
Great to hear!
Great video on this. Thanks you!
Glad it was helpful!
I have areas that are unmulched and areas that are wood mulched. The wood mulch definitely reduces the amount of weeds. Doesn't make it 0, not even close. But with no mulch you'll have a carpet of weeds in a couple weeks.
Here the weeds seem to grow right out of the middle of the mulch
Carpet of weeds with no mulch? That's only if you have a severe weed problem. Your lawn must also be 50% weeds in that case... Doesn't have to be.
@@otallono I assume Daniel was not talking about his lawn. Usually you don't mulch a lawn.
it helps if the mulch is thick and compacted, if not weeds happen, but you're right it helps cut down.
As my husband Iikes to explain it, even with the plastic fabric, and even with rubber mulch, dirt will still be blown and washed into your beds, and the little buggers grow in the new dirt.
Very very helpful video. Thank you very much sir!
Thanks for the great video! I didn't know the rubber mulch even existed until now! (Now I understand why my local stores were always sold out, and the crappy stuff was what was left behind and available for sale). During the Spring, I had spread the black wood mulch around the pool. Here in the Northeast, over the winter, the mulch just sat there. In the Spring, when everything is thawed, the black mulch had a ton of white mold. So, each year, I was forced to remove it all and replace it with new. My black wood mulch also attracted TONS of ants. Next year, I will seek out the black rubber mulch, before they sell out, and I'll then no longer have to add some each year as this rubber mulch seems to last much longer and retain its color too - a win-win for me in my book! Thanks for the comparo!
You bet Mike, thanks for watching!
If you love your garden never use rubber in your garden it's toxic to soil
I made a walkway to my patio with white rock edged with a black mulch border. Big mistake! Looked beautiful for about a month, then it started blowing all over the lawn, the deer trample it and spread it out and it faded real fast. This year Iâm replacing it with black rubber mulch. The reason for the border outside the rock walkway is to prevent me from sucking rock up in the lawn mower and hitting the cars next door. Itâs a small lawn and turns are tight, so I think it will be a better choice.
Rubber mulch stinks to high heaven. Never again!!
I bought black rubber mulch and I love it! It looks great!
Good contrast from brown and red
Contrast until the leaves start falling.
i bught the shreddred rubber and i hate the smell...
@@otto1630 hi Otto, it is keeping rabbits and raccoons out of my flower beds. That was a surprise using rubber mulch. Also, the smell subsided after awhile. I still love it!
This was helpful. I was afraid the red wouldn't look natural but it does. My main concern is attracting bugs so the rubber won't do that. Will be picking up some of the red this week. Thanks đ
Glad to help thanks for watching
google pros/cons of rubber mulch if planting in same area, it can leak chemicals into the soil.
Great video! Thank you for sharing!
6-3-23 my first time using brown mulch in mini garden. I never used it becuase I just started getting serious with my gardening. I did not research what would be the best mulch for my plants. I picked up a bag of the brown mulch for my veggies and herbs Phx heat can be brutal. I put just enough to covered the ground and watered it for few mins. My mini garden prior to getting serious there hardly any weed not sure why. I never put any fertilizer not took good cared of it until now. Never even heard of rubber mulch lol. Your video is very informative. I watched so many mulch videos I guess it's a preference on mulch wise. Some say it's very bad some say it's good etc. To me I don't care which mulch as long as it helps retain moisture for my babies am all good lol. Nutrients wise oh there are ton in the ground lol I added over the years. Thank you very informative!
Yes, Even with weed cloth under the mulch the weeds still grow! Easier to pull out but they still take root in the area where I used the barrier. Now some people claim the wood mulch to be âenvironmentally friendly â as it will compost itself into the garden. Which is what I have done by topping up the surface yearly, without weed cloth under it. Once a flower bed fills out you canât see the mulch anyway so as our short northern growing season progresses the fade isnât so much an issue.
Yes I have heard that too but I don't see how any dead dried wood mulch with dye on it is going to contribute any kind of useful nutrients to the plants in my garden I'm just not seeing it. I would love to see some real life testing by a respected agricultural school or something like that but if I want nutrients for my Flowers I mixed fertilizer in with the new topsoil and Milorganite when I plant I'm not expecting to get any vitamins out of dead wood mulch
You have to use the weed barrier you can't see through. Try the 20-30 year warranty weed barrier at Lowes. It's brown on one side and black on the other. You will never have any weeds that poke through. The cheap weed barrier will def get weeds poking up through it.
What does the rubber mulch do to improve soil đ€š, wood mulch does improve soil as it breaks down. Not sure about putting old tires into environment.đ€
Gwen, if you don't put recycled tire mulch in your garden, where do you think they will put the tires? Landfills. Also wood mulch is not some miracle grow food that feed your garden for decades.
Iâd rather have the toxins in the tires safely disposed of in a landfill than scattered around my yard.
@@fivespeed3026 Fair enough. But I have had rubber mulch in my garden for 12 years and all my plants are thriving. It's not like these are gushing barrels of toxins like the love canal. You're reading too many reports and scare tactics and hysteria mongers that want you think that everything you do is killing the earth. Don't forget the farting cows, destroying our OZONE!
@@jeffostroff itâs not about your plants thriving fool. Itâs about the micro plastics and other toxins like arsenic getting into the groundwater and accumulating in animals like humans, which can cause hormone disorders, birth defects, cancer, etc. but thatâs all fake because your grass is still green right? Gimme a break.
@@hithere5553 Yes, this sums it up perfectly, and Iâm far from some eco warrior. I prefer my Harley pipes loud and straight. But Iâm not going to grind up my old tires and dump them in my back yard. Thatâs just idiotic. You might as well start a burn pit for all your plastics.
That sifter is what I need for my flower bed which is right under a tree so I have dead leaves all year round from this tree and it looks terrible because of it!đ I'm going to be scouting out for a sifter now! Thanks for sharing!
Glad to help Yvonne glad you liked it
Thank you such a great video with real good comparisons.
Glad you liked it!
Iâve been using red rubber since installing my landscaping almost 10 years ago , I can think of one time Iâve used more in an area , And that was because I took out a bush and replaced it with another , that area is near the public sidewalk and occasionally ( not often a strong wind will blow the mulch out of its bed onto the sidewalk... But I just get my dustpan sweep it up and dump it back where it belongs ( I wouldnât use any other mulch in the long run itâs cheaper and less work , Plus NOW they come in a variety of colors not only red .... originally I bought from Home Depot.. but now itâs at Sams Club but Iâve seen more colors on line with f you care to go that route
I have seen Black and brown also
@@jeffostroff either of you guys have problems with your rubber mulch shrinking?
I filled my front flower bed with the stuff & nothing else other than the weed liner, & now it's like little pellets about 1/2 it's original size. So instead of overflowing that flowerbed like it was, it barely covers the ground...
I bought the same stuff to do the other side of my house last yr, but we had a bunch of fires & I couldn't get to it, so it sat covered, & I'm wondering if I should bother after looking at the sad, sad state the first side has turned into.
Have you guys seen any of yours shrink in hot, hot sun like that?
I loved this video. So honest and alot of thought. Lots of key points in here.Thank you!
You are so welcome!
Thank you Jeffđđđ Great video
Glad you enjoyed it thanks for watching Kim
Hello from Canada. What a lovely informative video just when i needed it . thank you so much for making this video. New subscriber. Following
Thanks for subbing Usha
I see the argument of no float away. I buy "living mulch" which is a dark brown mulch with compost and will decompose naturally. Made to resemble a forest bed that naturally is decaying and adding beneficial nutrients to the soil. The rubber is like a tarp - yes pretty, but not adding organic matter. Lawn people care about short-term for the most part. No, you can't get this at the big box stores. Putting rubber would get the ground very hot I would think. When in doubt, I will try to be as similar to nature as possible with the soil. - Organic
We are uploading a new mulch video this week where we test the temperature of the mulch in sunlight on a 90 degree day
May I ask where you buy such a product? I looked for something similar at garden centers after reading your comment, but wasnât successful. Perhaps from an arborist? Thank you.
@@annemurphy9339 I bought my rubber mulch-the Vigoro brand like he has here at Lowe's and Home Depot.
I put old roofing shingles under my mulch beds and havenât seen weeds in the 3 years since I started it ! Asphalt shingles seem to be the answer! However I might look into this rubber mulch also
That's a good idea
Wow I had no idea this rubber mulch wouldn't float!! Thank you for your video!
Glad I could help!
Great video! You sold me and you got a new subscriber. Really enjoyed the video. A little scared CZcams read my mind. I was thinking about what color I was going to use this year because last year's mulch is blah, and you popped up!
Welcome aboard John
@@jeffostroff just went and bought my rubber mulch. Will let you know what I think
float/nofloat aside, you have some seriously slow drainage in that area which is a large part of the problem.
drainage is not normally a problem in this spot but because when there's a huge deluge downpour like I was showing here the cement border around the garden sort of traps in a lot of water before it begins to overflow over the top
@@jeffostroff itâs a drainage problem. All those occasionally events, add up. Check on the foundation, especially if the house is 30 + years old. Shunt it Away to protect your investment.
I was just the other day looking at the Scotts mulch and the Home Depot brand and I like to buy the black colored mulch and I was reading on the bag that it guarantees to hold its color for 12 months which totally does not even last a few months but what I end up doing is every time I do my hedges I got some really fancy hedges in the front of my house and when you trim then it's nearly impossible get all the clippings out so I just end up raking a good part of it out and adding approximately 6 bags a few times a year but that's the one thing I hate the most is that 12-month guarantee
I would try laying sheets or a tarp around the bushes when you cut them to catch the clippings.
Thank you! People always think women donât know nothing about yard. I donât but I love sounding like I do. Watch you has really taught me a lotâ€ïž
Glad you liked it Lisa
Great video, new to channel. Thank you for posting this information. I had never heard of rubber mulch before. One of my sons had a nasty accident at a park that only uses wood mulch and I've questioned it's use, since.
Yes I like rubber mulch some people voice concerns about the toxic chemicals that are in it from the tires in the manufacturing process but who knows how much it's really leaching into the soil
Nice video. Right now there are 11 bags of black mulch that was delivered last night from HD. I ordered black rubber mulch (thatâs what I use since 2012) it just now needed a refresh, however, they sent the wrong order. But yea, thr rubber mulch is a winner for me. Enjoy.
So far this year Home Depot has sent me two of the wrong items delivered to the door. One time I ordered a small tool and they sent a flower pot LOL. When I called them to have them resend the correct tool, they told me to just keep the flower pot because it's not even worth them dealing with picking it up and returning it and restocking
Our rubber mulch floated all throughout the St. Augustine lawn. In N. Texas during summer our rubber mulch got hotter than wood mulch, thus drying out soil sooner.
With regular watering and rain, your lawn and garden will have enough water. It's not like the wood mulch is watering your garden for you.
Regular watering....weâre under water restrictions.
@@marcirobins5144 Then it's time to consider xeriscaping. We've got rural housing developments exploding in our area, we can barely keep up with water supply to them, and guess what - every freaking one of those houses is getting St Augustine or Bermuda grass installed after construction. And then they wonder why we have to impose water restrictions in the summer.
you would be absolutely correct!! I've lived in central Texas and 2-3 inches of shredded wood mulch is much better, it keeps the soil cooler... Plus, you may want to check into cedar mulch...... it has an added value.... slithery creatures with big teeth and poison in them(diamondbacks) do not like the cedar mulch
@@jeffostroff wood naturally holds moisture, rubber doesnt.
My dad and I weeded and mulched for years and weeds would happily grow in it. Nowadays as a homeowner myself I mulch about five inches deep and deal with nearly no weeds at all. I have about sixty 2.0 cubic foot bags down around the house. I am testing pine straw for the first time on a very large new bed of evergreens and so far it looks like I need about twice as much to start preventing weeds.
The type of weeds we get here in FL, practically grow hyroponically, no soil needed
@@jeffostroff I just met a guy from Florida who said the same thing!! Iâm up in middle TN.
This helped a lot..thank you!
Glad it helped!
Depends what your goals are. Wood mulch improves soil over time and eventually feeds the worms and plants. Rubber does nothing. 12 years later when rubber looses its color, what are you going to do with it. The wood mulch just because soil.
I have had mine for 12 years now and looks brand new. The color is only guaranteed 12 years but so far has not faded.
*loses
My husband and I are first time homeowners and I know basically nothing about taking care of our yard. This was very helpful. Thank you!
Glad to help and thanks for watching
i hope for your sake, you didnt use rubber mulch .
keep them coming jeff... thank you
you bet
What a great video, thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Hmm itâs interesting... but Iâd be concerned about chemicals leaching into my garden with the rubber mulch. Plus, I thought the break down of the mulch was kinda a natural process that was beneficial... Iâm new to all this so the video was Interesting to watch. Iâm using some mulch around some fruit trees we planted and I put stone trim around it. Hopefully my mulch doesnât float away when we get a bad storm! It would be interesting to know if the rubber kept its color long term.
Yes, there could be minor leaching into the soil and yes wood mulch provides benefits, but for how long? I bet the amount of benefit from wood mulch is the same as the amount of leaching from the rubber mulch.
I just finished shoveling out remnants of 11 year old wood mulch that did not break down at all, if anything it made the soil worse by absorbing moisture the soil, the affected area was basically dust now. I'm currently having to re compost the entire area (two large flowerbeds) and switching to rubber mulch this fall.
@@jeffostroff Toxic chemicals in the soil are forever! Even if they wash down stream the toxic chemicals still pollute rivers, ponds, lakes, estuaries, and in time the oceans. The toxic chemicals in old tires are best dealt with in other ways.
Ya, pretty sure a) rain does not come from the ground up and b) you're going to have bigger problems than mulch if your beds are retaining 2" of standing rain.
You need someone to redesign your beds, not worry about mulch.
NO BED, outside of a water or brackish plant bed should flood that much for that long during anything but a hurricane!
where our your drainage or weep spots?
Where are your gutters and downspouts for that matter? Oh you took them off for your demo, I see...
You make a lot of good sense I like truthfulness thanks guy.
I appreciate that Theresa! Thanks!
Thanks for this very informative video, on my way to purchase some rubber mulch.
Had no idea! Great to know!!!
Glad I could help!
Jeff thank u very much for your video on mulch. Been buying mulch for ever, i didn't know about rubber mulch. That's a big one for me . I Thank God for you .Jeff your the men. I'm glad i subscribe to your channel. Have a nice n safe Friday.đđđ
Glad to help and thanks for watching another one William!
I will say in my experience, although weeds will grow in mulch, a mulched bed vs a bare dirt bed will have considerably less weeds
And looks better too
If you put mulch at the proper depth it will prevent a lot of weeds from growing compared to a dirt bed or rock bed
Was putting rubber mulch around my girlfriend's house today. She got a good deal on it at Aldi's. I was worried it might not have been a good choice, but your video convinces me it was. I really like the fact it's heavier, so maybe I'll be able to blow the leaves off it without having the mulch itself also get blown out of the beds.
I read a post last night about the city giving away free mulch. Well, guess what pops up in you tube today? (Yes, this video)
Finally this âtrackingâ has worked to my benefit, I need to put some rubber mulch down the play area soon, very helpful thanks!
Thanks for sharing!
I've always used black woodchips and although it doesn't prevent 100% of all weeds and has no effect on Bermuda grass it definitely makes a big difference in weed suppression. Without mulch I would get tons of thick weeds growth everywhere. Thistles, purslane, catch weed. With mulch it's like 20% of the weeds that grow and they're easy to pull in mulch. I've also never had issues with them floating in the rain.
nice video. i want to switch to rubber mulch. do you recommend cleaning out the wood mulch first before laying rubber? And when using rubber mulch, do you recommend laying down the fabric weed barrier first? thanks.
GREAT INFORMATION!
Glad it was helpful!
great video !! Thanks !!
Glad you liked it!
Love itđđ
Thanks den!
Pea gravel works well in beds and it looks great.
That's a another good solution
Love the natural options, always looks better.
If you don't want weeds:
1. Put down a 30 year or commercial grade weed barrier. A barrier you can't see through, you can get it at lowes. It's brown on one side and black on the other. Steak it down.
2. Cut a hole in the weed barrier where you want to plant. Cut the hole a little bigger than the plant.
3. Use osmocote in hole before you put the plant in and a little around the plant after it goes in.
4. I've used rubber mulch for years. Put rubber mulch on top of the weed barrier and away from the plant by a few inches.
5. The only area you will get weeds is up through the plant or areas where there is no weed barrier.
6. You can also put down pine straw on top of the barrier but you will still get a few weeds.
7. I would avoid using rubber mulch on hills because it does wash down and you have to put it back in place. It doesn't float though.
8. Also over time the soil underneath the weed barrier erodes and you will have to eventually lift it up to add more dirt. The soil will still be healthy because you are constantly adding the osmocote to the plant which then goes into the soil.
9. The color stays for years and you never have to replace it.
10. Blowing it off can be a pain unless you have metal barriers. If you do have barriers it will catch the mulch as you blow.
11. Picking pine straw out of it from trees is a pain.
12. Keep the weed barrier away from the trunk of trees, allow at least 18 in for the trunk to breath.
13. Keeps insects away, especially termites.
14. The rubber mulch is more expensive but you never have to replace it. Regular mulch you have to replace every year.
I think it's worth using the rubber mulch.
If they had brown gravel I would use that. Gravel does work best though if used over weed barrier. Easy to blow off, doesn't move once you put it down. Perhaps you can use brown rock or brick stain for color if you don't like the color of gravel. Lava rocks are too light and move around too much especially when you use the blower.
Using regular mulch
1. You get weeds constantly and are forced to use chemicals to remove them or waste your time digging them up. I hate regular mulch.
Beware of rubber mulch if you have intense hot summers. We are in Canada and we have very hot humid summers. Average temp can be in the low 90's for periods of time. We purchased black rubber mulch and it looked beautiful BUT it got so hot and burned the leaves and roots of all of the annuals I planted. I pruned all of our shrubs to keep them away from the mulch but the heat still radiated from the rubber and burned any leaves close to the mulch. We lost approx $200 in annuals that year. We had to remove 80 square meters of rubber mulch that Fall. Huge job. Just beware.
We live in s Florida where it's 90s most of the time, we have never seen this failure mode before.
I also heard from a tree buy or arborist that mounding mulch up on tree trunks is not good for the tree at all and that its more susceptibal to disease...
That is exactly correct, I bet we was a licensed arborist, they are the only guys who seem to understand this.
I installed rubber mulch. After a heavy rainfall its travels all the way down my driveway. Once I get my gutters installed I'll try it again and see if it sticks.
All mulches stay in place better if there is something to coral them like a curb, make sure the height of the mulch does not have it rolling down onto the driveway, etc. Of course wood will still up and over like we showed in the video. Maybe the water gushing from your gutter was forcing the mulch to loosen up and move.
My rubbber mulch runs downhill every rainfall. Impossible to get ride of it. Itâs mixed in 15 years of wood mulch composting.
Excellent video thank you
Glad you liked it Carlos
I don't know but I can honestly tell you I had one bed that was once a jungle, and after it became a rubber mulch bed, I did not see any more weeds for years. Also it kept the weeds away for at least six years I would say. So I'm a true believer that it is an awesome weed preventer. The only drawback is that it is probably five times expensive as wood mulch but you don't have to replenish it year. However, I am here because I am worried that I won't be able to remove heavy leaf cover in my new beds where there are alot of trees, and have the rubber mulch stay in place. I guess I will find out this fall.
We had several flower beds with rubber mulch. Seven years later the color is the same. Yes, it is more expensive, but will last a very long time without replenishing. Two things to consider: not sure if it adds chemicals to area (no plants died) and rubber mulch heats up much more than wood mulch.
Hi, newbie here. Great video, thanks. I am struggling with using inorganic mulch for growing plants, but your argument is extremely compelling. What negatives come from using rubber? Is it JUST AS EASY to grow plants using rubber? Thanks again. I've done so much research, but your answer is gonna make my decision.
We just a few weeks ago uploaded a newer video discussing pros and cons of each method of mulch, including burning. czcams.com/video/wD_i-qFf-T4/video.html
well it leaches toxic chemicals into your soil for starters
@@psymi-hk1fp YEP! - Rubber mulch can contain plasticizers, accelerators, minerals and organic contaminants that may be hazardous to the environment and human health. Contaminants which include aluminum, chromium, copper, selenium, sulfur and zinc, can leach into the soil and nearby water as the rubber breaks down. Zinc is a major problem in areas with acidic soil because the zinc breaks down faster making the surrounding soil toxic which can kill your plants because metals like zinc are more available for plant uptake in acidic soils. Other chemicals, such as 2-mercaptobenzothiazole, is a common accelerator used in rubber vulcanization and is known to remain in the environment.
I completely cover my flowerbeds with plastic and then I put the mulch on top of that. It helps a lot to keep the weeds from growing and when I plant something I just cut a slit in the plastic and dig a hole and the slit lets the water get to the plants when it rains or I water. Has worked great for me for years and I don't have to use poison around my home.
It does lead to poor soil however, as nothing gets worked into the soil.
YEAH, PUT DOWN YOUR PLASTIC SO THAT RAIN AND IRRIGATION WATER CAN'T PENETRATE INTO THE SOIL. LET'S GET REALLY STUPID NOW.
Yeah I need to upgrade to rubber mulch. I been looking into it. And ur video more than helped me decide that it is something I want to invest in. Will need like 40 bags.
check on Sam's Club or Costco website sometimes they sell this stuff by the pallet and you can go in with a few other people on it
Wood mulch gives you a natural look and most all gardeners hate rubber. Go natural.
Very informative
I just finished putting down so,e rubber nugget mulch. The initial price was a bit hard to swallow, but I weighed the pros and cons and decided in its favor mostly because I have a big problem with palmetto bugs and American cockroaches, all of which have virtual condominiums in my flowerbeds and routinely crawl into my house. Iâm not thrilled with the chemical breakdown aspect of the rubber, but heavily spraying with insecticides isnât ideal either. I donât mind pulling weeds instead of using a chemical weed killer, and I like that it doesnât need to be renewed annually.
I'm just learning about rubber mulch. Your comment was 9 months ago, has this really helped with cockroaches?
I'm also curious about the palmettos/cockroaches. If rubber mulch helps, I'd makeover everything. Nothing is more important to me than trying to control those nasty bugs. A few have flew in my house and I'm told they may come in through the hvac vents so I'm covering them as well and loading up on mint plants and peppermint oil.
Iâd like to see your soil test results. I suspect the chemicals in both mulches are leeching into the water table but which chemicals and how much?
Also; we need to explain the principles of negative rake to you as it pertains to your rain flow.
It's funny how you make it sound like a few pieces of rubber is going to gush barrels of poison into the solid, through coral bedrock that takes a crane to bust it, and then work it's way down in hundreds of feet into the water table. I would like to see your water tests that show exactly how much is dumped into the dense dirt and bedrock, and how far down it gets.
I put down 18 tons of mulch on my flower beds in 3 years. I'm 67 years old and nobody helped. In Lancaster County, Pa. it just blows away each winter or during the summer storms. I just contracted for a landscaper to put down 10 tons of Maryland stone with underlaying fabric. Done with mulch.
I bought the rubber mulch and put it in our flower gardens around our 5 acres, it absolutely looked horrible once we got it in the flower beds. Ended up taking it all out of our flower beds and went back to a wood mulch. But instead of bark dust that deteriorated quickly. Weâre now using bark nuggets that takes a lot longer to deteriorate and doesnât get weeds growing thru it near as fast either. Same thing with gravel, I will not buy 5/8 minus or any of size with minus added to the measurements. Reason being that minus means youâre getting basically a lot of fine material right down to dust that weeds germinate in quickly. Where when I put down a descent layer of 5/8 or 3/4 rock with absolutely no minus crap it stays looking nice without any weeds for quite some time. But if any weeds do grow in it, the weeds are usually very easy to pull out of the larger rock as well as the wood nuggets
It's hard to find one product that works for everything
Great video, I will be getting the rubber much! For weeds, do you put down that cloth barrier underneath??
Also, where did you get the wall planters? Thanks
I don't put down the landscape fabric because I think it's a waste of time money and effort. Weeds will grow above it I've seen it happen back in the days when we used wood mulch so I don't even waste time with it anymore if you put down enough of the rubber mulch it should keep most of the weeds out. Ask for those wall planters I think we got them at a nursery something like 20 years ago
@@jeffostroff hey thank you! I have some table top planters just like those but the wall ones add a nice pop!
Had 1-2 yards of rubber mulch around my kids playset for many many years. It was awesome-no maintenance & looked great. Just this past year we gave away the playset and I found out my local waste removal transfer station wouldn't let me dispose of it there if I needed to. Luckily for me, the guy that took the playset also wanted the mulch. Have been wondering ever since how people dispose/recycle this stuff when they're done with it?
Maybe there are dumps for dangerous material
how to dispose of it.... that's the question the person who came up with the rubber mulch was asking themselves with all this toxic waste... they got rid of it by mulching it up and selling it to you. ;D
@@jeffostroff why would you put something you consider to be a âdangerous materialâ on your vegetable garden đ€
The house my friends bought 5 years ago had rubber mulch in the back yard in the play area. When it got hot out their backyard smelled like a junk yard. They pulled it all out after the first summer, we couldn't stand to eat out on the patio because of the smell.
Thank jeff alway bought wood mulch got to try rubber mulch
Good choice!
I use wood mulch & once it has been wet down, mine doesn't float away. Mine does definitely help prevent weeds, very few grow through the mulch & makes it very easy for me to spot the weeds & pull them occasionally. I always rake up the old mulch every 2-3 years & deposit it in flower beds or the garden out back. I can mix a little new red wood mulch in with the old and get by for 3 years. I should add I live on the edge of a desert so very dry climate & need all the help holding moisture in the ground that I can get!
^ this.
I live in Phx the heat can be brutal. I played the brown mulch hopefully that will helps retain moisture when the temperature hits 115-120
Wish I would seem last week just put in 20 bags đ wood but it looks good I will defently use rubber this spring weed control I use preen it seems to work well
They usually show up in the early spring in larger more cost effective bags of rubber mulch at Sam's Club and Bjs Club in the early spring, so get them as soon as you see them, they sell out quickly and they don't get any more in.
No donât do that
What a wonderful video!
Thank you very much!
I just switched this year to brown rubber mulch nuggets, was having allot of issues with ants living in the wood mulch. well worth the initial investment and I can use my leaf blower over the nuggets to get leaves and grass out without blowing rubber nuggets everywhere.
Yes that is very true. We used to have carpenter ants living in our wood mulch many years ago, and it led to one of our 3 palm trees growing up from that garden getting infested and it had to be cut down.
I have seen landscape professionals spray paint mulch in central Florida.
@@kedabu72 they have mulch dye
Love the video! Do you know if rubber mulch ever goes on sale at Home Depot? The wood mulch is usually 5 for $10 at various times of the year but I'm not sure if the bags of rubber mulch ever goes on sale.
I usually do not see rubber mulch on sale at home depot although you can use the 10% off lowes coupon. I think the much better deal is at Sam's club and B j's which we usually see starting in the Spring every year and it generally sells out pretty quick there so if you are member of either store I would start looking for it soon and the minute you see it arrive I would start buying bags of it. They usually sell bags that are larger than home depot and about $8
Costco have them for 10 rubber mulch tho pretty nice.
I found it cheaper at Menards not sure if you have one in your area. Home Depot doesn't have the red rubber mulch in stores if that's color you want.
Bought a house over ago and the previous owners had rubber mulch. We did some yard work and the rubber mulch had really tiny little pieces that stuck into our skin and made us itch! I had to take a long shower to get it off. Since then, we had the rubber mulch removed =/
Oh wow! I've never heard of that before most of the rubber mulch I see are big chunks unless somebody modified it or maybe they bought a super cheapie brand but I would not let that one experience ah divert you away from using it I can tell you I've never had a problem with a single bag that I've ever bought from Sam's Club, Costco, or BJ's, or even Home Depot
THOSE LITTLE PIECES ARE THE METAL BELTS THAT MAKE THE TIRES STRONGER. THERE'S NYLON PLY AND STEEL BELTED RADIALS. YOU GOT THE STEEL BELTED RADIAL TIRES. NOW WHEN BUYING TIRES, I BELIEVE YOU WANT STEEL BELTED RADIALS. WHEN YOU BUY RUBBER MULCH, YOU SHOULD ALWAYS LOOK AT THE BAG LABEL AND OPT FOR STEEL BELTED RADIAL MULCH SINCE THAT KIND WILL GIVE YOU MORE DURABLE STRENGTH TO PREVENT WEEDS POPPING THROUGH AS A SMALL LAYER OF METAL COVERS THE LANDSCAPE. QUITE NICE, HUH?
i just bought bags of mulch. next year im definitely gonna do this and replace the wood with rubber. i can only do it for the front yard though because over half of my backyard is covered with mulch. its the way the homeowner made it when we bought the house last year
Good info.!
Glad it was helpful!
This has been extremely helpful
Glad to help Erika!
Thank you for this video. One question, with the rubber mulch will I still spray with round up for weeds? If any weeds do appear is it easy to remove them - basically the same as with wood mulch?
Yes I occasionally pick weeds.
@@jeffostroff But you said it eliminates weeding! Sounds like a lie to me.
Come for the mulch advise, stay for the jokes.đ€Ł You're funny! Made me think of Noah's Arch with the wood and water reference
Great video! I've read rubber mulch can be more of a fire hazard as it burns hotter than wood and it can be bad for soil if you plan to plant in same soil. What's the best spray for weeds on wood mulch next to bushes? I don't want the bushes at risk of dying off. Thanks in advance!
IT burns hotter, but that does not make it worse than wood.
After decades of landscaping experience 1. Mulch definitely HELPS prevent weeds. Try having a bare dirt bed right next to a mulched bed sometime. 2. After you have several inches of mulch, don't continue to heap inches and inches more on your beds, not even once a year, all that is needed is a top dressing just enough to freshen up the look. How many times a year only depends on your level of OCD. 3. All wood mulch will float away, but some types stay put much better than others. Also, in most situations how much you beds flood can be mitigated. I'm pretty sure the flooding shown could be mitigated if not stopped. 4. Natural undyed mulch does not fade anywhere near as fast as dyed mulch. 5. Rubber mulch, stone mulch, sheet plastic and landscape fabric ect, in the long run don't stop weeds either and all create there own problems which are usually less fun to deal with than just keeping on top of pulling the weeds, IMHO of course. Ps. My favorite weeding tools, Potato hook for larg areas, stab the tines 2-3 inches in to the ground then give a short pull to break up the soil, done right, the weeds will pull easily and very little soil will contaminat your mulch, washing back down with the next rain. My other favorite is a BIG flat tip screw driver around 16 inches over all.
Mulch has not helped weeds where I am. We are working on a follow up video where we will show you weeds, weeds, and more weeds
@@jeffostroff Maybe applying some pre-emergent would help stave the growth?
@@jeffostroff Just use some Preen in a hand held spreader. 20 minutes and all my beds are fairly weed free for months.
John, would you mind sharing which types of wood mulch stay put better than others as you mentioned above? Thanks!
@@mellowjammer Shredded Cheddar mulch is more velcro like than pine bark mulch.
yeah I started using rubber mulch this year got tired of buying new mulch every year.
It's great you'll go years before adding any bags. Maybe one or 2 a year just to cover up areas where lots of seeds landed, but now I'll be using my sifter a lot more to filter all the small debris out.
How do you like the rubber mulch? Concerned about bed maintenance with weeds and leaves bush limbs etc when trimming. Can you spray round up on the mulch? Does it stain it?
@@shanew7361 yes you can spray round up on it no staining
@@knowledge1372 I'm sick of paying for mulch every year. I don't remove it like one should every year either. How do you find spring and fall clean ups go compared to having wood mulch?
@@shanew7361 its actually the same in my opinion just not having to buy new mulch every year is great
Helpful video. I need a simple solution to fill in a small area near my driveway and need a reliable weed blocker. I heard cardboard underneath is good but haven't checked.. so cardboard then rubber mulch may be a option
Cardboard will likely decompose, I would use those rubber tiles from the garden center
Cardboard creates a barrier that prevent water to properly penetrate to the root system. The purpose of mulch is mostly for moisture retention and temperature control of the soil, weed prevention is mostly a secondary reason. Rubber mulch does not do a good job of either as in the summer it can absorb heat which makes garden dry out faster.
Really what you should be looking for are any mulches that are triple shredded and not made from old pallets. It breaks down adding organic matter to the soil reducing compaction and therefore creates better drainage.
Really there is no 100% way to stop weeds without using some sort of pre-emergent like Preen or post emergent like roundup, or manually picking weeds as you see them.
Hi Jeff, I found your video on mulch vs rubber mulch interesting. I purchased a home with mulch around the side of my home. I was thinking about changing it to black rubber mulch. Do you recommend removing the old mulch first?
Hey you donât remove your old mulch because it will break down and add nutrients to the soil. If you use the same color you canât tell there are both in the bed. I use both but I donât have beds that flood because I created drainage by edging them.
So far, I have not heard anything brought up about the heat index from the rubber mulch. Also, what about the wires from inside the tires that are being shredded to create this mulch?
The manufacturer uses powerful magnets to remove the wire.
Attracts termites too! Nature removes dead wood with termites. Keep that in mind.
Yes we had a carpenter ant infestation
That might work in the wild or woods but having termites close to your home is asking for trouble.
Never had that issue nor have I ever heard a single person say they have ever had that problem.
So helpful, thx...đ
Glad it was helpful!
Glad it was helpful!
The rubber mulch will work in the areas of my backyard where I'm not growing edibles and areas where I want less vegetation to keep down bugs. I may even do red back there for some pop. Thanks for the tip about ignoring the 3" instructions. That can be really expensive. It's 1am and I probably won't sleep in anticipation of Lowe's opening at 6am. I took a vacay day just for mulching and preventative pest control.