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San Diego

Hello all, I've heard very different opinions about whether mulch around the plant is beneficial vs. harmful. Living in southern California, especially in a drought, retaining water around the roots seems critical. But I've heard mulch can lead to disease. I used it last year but only around the seedling. Is it a good idea to use mulch extensively? Does using shade cloth mean there is no need for mulch? Thanks in advance for opinions.

2/23/2014 1:42:17 PM

Muddy Waters

What kind of mulch ?

2/23/2014 2:45:46 PM

San Diego

I don't mulch, but if I did, I would use some leaves ontop. I did this one year many years back, it seemed to keep weeds down and the leaves slowly disappeared as I misted and decomposed. I used just a thin layer. I still like shade cloth the best. But I'm sure you will have many opinions.

2/23/2014 3:39:00 PM

Torrance, Ca.

If you want a 1100 pound plus kin Kevin, do what Jim does. He lives not far from you and has about the same climate!

And he doesn't have a huge area either, a true backyard gardener like us.

2/23/2014 4:02:05 PM

Bethlehem CT

I have used hay as a mulch, it has worked fine. In fact in my opinion it has kept down disease. Anything that keeps the soil from splashing on the leaves should help resist disease. I am no heavy hitter, but if I had to choose between growing with mulch and not growing at all. I would definitely use the mulch. There is a heavy hitter down in Australia that goes 1400 hundred plus with a hay mulch. If your soil is cold wet and poorly draining maybe hay won't work for you. My guess is you won't have that problem in San Diego. I think it will work great.

2/23/2014 6:11:56 PM

Connecticut

I do not use mulch as you are basically adding something to the growing area and odds are this practice would not be sustainable for the next 75+ years. I know most growers do not think long term but if we want to have sustainable practices this is the general mentality we should have.

Often nutrient based mulches will result in the growing area to become excessive in a short period of time (depending on the starting levels).

As "big moon" points out hay based mulch will also have insulating properties and as a result can result in your plants having a slower start earlier in the season.

Just my thoughts.

2/23/2014 8:44:29 PM

Upa Creek, MO

Kevin, if you have 2 plants, mulch one and not the other.

2/24/2014 7:34:56 AM

Hinckley MN

Shade cloth reduces leaf temperature and therfore water loss, but mulch would save even more water. A mulch that I have used in general gardening is newspapers and grass clippings. Save or collect newspapers and bag your grass clippings. Lay down 2-3 layers of newsprint, and cover with 1-2 inches of fresh grass clippings. I would focus on mulching between vines after burying them. This mulch is excellent at preventing weeds and moderate at preventing water loss. As the grass dries out it makes a light covering for the newsprint, protecting it from blowing away. I have never experienced any increase in disease or or insects using newsprint/grass clipping mulch. Make sure the grass hasn't recently been sprayed with an herbicide. I have not used this with giant pumpkins, but have used it with cucumbers, zucchini, and other curcurbits without harm.

2/24/2014 6:11:02 PM

Springfield, Missouri

Kevin,

Just remember your location is unique, and what works for some may not work for you. For example we can not bury vines in our area due to humidity, clay soil, and disease pressure.

Shade Cloths

From the end of June to mid September our highs are usually over 90 degrees, and are in the low 100s for a few weeks. We have had some dry summers and it is really hard on the pumpkins. I bought a shade cloth a few years ago and have had great results.

The one problem that I had with the shade cloth is PM. To solve this problem set up your shade cloth so that it can be retracted in the morning and evening. This will allow light to hit the leaves when the temperatures aren't too high, and kill some of the PM.

Here are a few options for your mulches.

A living mulch would be bad for you considering how dry it is in California right now.

If you grow a cover crop you can use a 4x4 and a rope to mechanically kill the cover crop or spray it with round-up a couple of weeks before you plant. You simply leave the cover crop on top of the soil. This method is 100% sustainable, and is how many of the organic growers control weeds and water loss… minus the glyphosate. Do some research, timing is everything with this method. You will want your cover crop to be dead for a few weeks in order to avoid allelopathic effects.

I use high carbon mulches such as leaf mold, clippings, or newspaper. If you don’t have access to a sufficient amount of leaf mold or clippings use the cover crop method. I collect maple leaves from around town in the fall, and then let them slowly compost. After you till in your spring cover crop put down newspaper and cover it with leaf mold or clippings. I trench where the vines are so that water can get down to the secondary root system.

Try a few different methods and see what method works best for you.

Logan

2/25/2014 1:00:15 PM

Pocatello (cliffwarren@yahoo.com)

In my case I would not use mulch until after soil temps are above average. I need all the soil temp I can get.

2/25/2014 5:00:27 PM