Mulch around plants?

[ReaperTheRed]

I was curious if anyone places mulch around their plants, either in the ground or in the pots. It gets really hot here in Texas and I have read people placing newspaper with hay/straw around the plants which helps reduce watering and stress on the plants. Anybody try it? My biggest worry is it creating a home for more insects but I am thinking about doing it this year. 
 
Thanks!

 

[Grass Snake]

I was curious if anyone places mulch around their plants, either in the ground or in the pots. It gets really hot here in Texas and I have read people placing newspaper with hay/straw around the plants which helps reduce watering and stress on the plants. Anybody try it? My biggest worry is it creating a home for more insects but I am thinking about doing it this year. 
 
Thanks!

 
Mulch helps prevent weeds but more importantly it help the soil retain moisture which is super important here in Texas. Not to mention it will break down and feed and build structure to the soil. More pros than cons but make sure not to put more than a couple inches at a time because too much mulch could rob water from plants. 

 

[Walchit]

Look up "back to Eden" gardening. There is conflicting info about wood chips, some people say the Rob nitrogen from the soil. But I have seen the back to Eden growers with nice plants. I was gonna use cardboard and wood chips in my paths and maybe newspaper and straw around the plants, maybe just straw

 

[midwestchilehead]

I have used newspaper and grass clippings in the past. Last year I tried just grass clippings with no noticeable difference, so that is what I will use from now on. If I don't mulch, weed pressure here will quickly take over the garden.

 

[bpiela]

Look up "back to Eden" gardening. There is conflicting info about wood chips, some people say the Rob nitrogen from the soil. But I have seen the back to Eden growers with nice plants. I was gonna use cardboard and wood chips in my paths and maybe newspaper and straw around the plants, maybe just straw

 

I have used this straw with success in the past.
 

 

[AtomicArmadillo]

I was curious if anyone places mulch around their plants, either in the ground or in the pots. It gets really hot here in Texas and I have read people placing newspaper with hay/straw around the plants which helps reduce watering and stress on the plants. Anybody try it? My biggest worry is it creating a home for more insects but I am thinking about doing it this year. 
 
Thanks!

 
It gets hot here as well. I use Cedar Mulch to keep pests away and weeds from growing. Works out very well.
 

 

[mcraighead]

Where I live (low desert) mulch is as essential as a good soil and fertilizer.  This is what I use:
 
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[nmlarson]

I was curious if anyone places mulch around their plants, either in the ground or in the pots. It gets really hot here in Texas and I have read people placing newspaper with hay/straw around the plants which helps reduce watering and stress on the plants. Anybody try it? My biggest worry is it creating a home for more insects but I am thinking about doing it this year. 
 
Thanks!

 
It gets really hot here in South Central Pennsylvania, too.  I play in the dirt and straw is my mulch of choice.  It "knits" together to stay in place, creates a weed barrier, shades the ground and holds moisture in, plus it provides a habitat for some of the desirable insects, like spiders and ground beetles, that prey on a whole range of bad guys like aphids, caterpillars, slugs, Colorado Potato Beetles, cutworms and grasshoppers.  In addition, the light color reflects sunlight back up into the plant to, theoretically, confusing any shade-loving insects that might be hiding out.  Finally, it breaks down and composts in place.  All this assumes you get a "clean" bale that's not loaded with seed just waiting to sprout.  
 
The only drawback for me is when the wild swings in weather hit. 100 degrees and no rain for weeks, then it rains for days or weeks on end.  That's when I usually end up pulling back the mulch and digging trenches around the plants to keep them from drowning.
 
I say "Yay," go for it.

 

[hotpepperguy]

From what i know with experience is that mulch can be good and bad. First the good part of using mulch is that yes it does help retain moisture so you can lessen your water bill a bit. The bad part of using mulch is that it can sometimes spread disease because too much moisture is locked in and your not allowing your soil to dry out a bit to help kill plant viruses, bad bacteria, etc. I find that peppers do love water but it is good to allow your soil to dry out a bit.
 
Like other people said too, it depends on the area you live in. See i live in North Carolina, great place to grow peppers because it's temperate and the growing season is long, but it is also a sub-tropical climate. A lot of humidity and moisture is in the air, not to mention it rains and storms like crazy here, so i wouldn't use mulch because of this. In drier regions of the country it could be very helpful because drier areas hold less of a chance to allow viruses or bad bacteria to harm your plants.