A well-mulched garden can yield 50 percent more than an unmulched garden the same size. Space rows closer as there is little or no need to cultivate the soil. Plant food is more available in cooler soil, and the extra soil moisture increases plant growth and yields. You will harvest more fruit because of less fruit rot. Fruit does not touch the soil, and soil is not splashed up on the fruit. See figure 6. This is true for tomato fruits that rot easily when resting on the soil surface. Potatoes can be mulched heavily as the vines grow. This causes tubers to form in and under the mulch layer. These potatoes are less susceptible to soil rot, easier to harvest and less likely to be bruised during harvest.

Garden mulching reduces maintenance. A good mulch layer eliminates the need for weeding, and mulched vegetables are cleaner at harvest time. Fruits of tomato, melon and squash plants never touch the soil.

Mulching Materials

Many materials are available for mulching a garden. Some examples are: compost, straw, gin trash and sawdust.

• Compost is generally the best mulching material for the home garden. It is usually free of weed seeds and is inexpensive. Prepare compost from materials present in your yard. It is not necessary to purchase expensive materials for mulching.
• Straw is short lived and coarse textured. More straw is needed for the same effect as compost or lawn clippings. Generally, less of the finer-textured materials is required to provide a 3-inch layer of mulch after settling. compost, however, usually requires only about 4 inches to provide a 3-inch mulch layer.
• Gin trash is commonly available in Texas. It is risky to use, however, without knowing its source and prior treatment. Make sure that the farmer did not use arsenicals on the cotton. Arsenicals are long-lived chemicals that can be present in gin trash for several months or years. Also, gin trash may contain weed seeds and diseases. Compost gin trash before applying it to your garden to make it safer and easier to use. The heat generated by composting kills most weed seeds and most disease organisms that infect plants.
• Sawdust is commonly available especially in East Texas. If well managed, it can be a good mulch. It can result in a temporary, but sharp, decrease in soil nitrogen. Add a small amount of garden fertilizer to the soil after applying sawdust directly to a garden. Even better, add nitrogen to sawdust, then compost it before spreading it on your garden.
• Plastic is an effective mulch if used properly. Use black plastic in the spring and early summer to warm the soil. Black plastic keeps light from the soil and prevents weeds from growing. Clear plastic warms the soil, but weeds can grow beneath the plastic. A disadvantage of plastic is that it cannot be turned into the soil at the end of the season. See figure 7.