Anti Bug Mulches

Bugs and insects help natural mulches decompose, but certain pests are potentially harmful. 1 approach to prevent damage from unwelcome insects would be to use a sulfur which keeps bug problems to a minimum. Altering your mulching technique may also help encourage healthy plant growth while reducing pest problems.

Mulch and Insects

Mulch helps plants by controlling weeds and maintaining soil moisture, temperature and fertility. Mulches also offer shelter and protection for many distinct species of insects. Organic mulches composed of materials such as leaves, wood chips and bark may attract termites and carpenter ants, as well as large numbers of sow bugs, millipedes, earwigs and centipedes that attack buildings and plants. This is particularly true during seasons with heavy rainfall. However, not all insects from mulch are harmful and most just decompose mulch into organic matter that improves dirt.

Wood Mulches

Wood mulches are among the most popular used by craftsmen because of their attractive look, ready availability and low price. The wood from cedar trees and crimson hemlock includes an oil with a scent that repels bugs such as moths, ticks, snails, slugs and pillbugs, though not termites or carpenter ants. Grade-A pine bark doesn’t include living organic matter and thus doesn’t attract insects looking for nesting material.

Additional Organic Mulches

Non-wood organic mulches include shredded leaves, grass clippings and other plant and vegetable matter. Like wood, organic mulches provide minerals and nutrients to soil that will help nurture the roots of plants. Examples of bug-resistant mulches that seem to work against termites, according to a study in Guelph, Ontario, include java bean chaff, cocoa shells and peat moss. Straw mulch indirectly affects residents of harmful insects by favoring species of larval predators that attack pests.

Inorganic Mulches

Inorganic mulches are a category of nonliving materials such as pebbles, lava rocks, seashells, plastic and rubber. Even though they don’t attract insects, neither do they break down and improve soil nourishment. The Guelph study found that decorative stone and rubber mulch proved completely effective against termites. Mulch made from recycled rubber tires, available in many different colours, is also useful at keeping bugs at bay. Aluminum foil or silver plastic mulch used around vegetable crops may considerably reduce insects such as thrips, aphids and the viruses they occasionally carry.

Mulching Techniques

In general, wood chip mulches won’t attract termites that are not already present in your region. However, you can improve your odds of preventing a termite infestation by keeping mulch at least 6 inches away from any building base rather than permitting mulch to cover windowsills or come in contact with siding. Use a layer of mulch that is just 1 to 2 inches thick, since deeper mulch layers help encourage high moisture levels, the perfect atmosphere for termites. Periodically raking mulch beds to provide aeration is also valuable.

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