Bentleigh homes have mulch to gain

Want to live in a Bentleigh home with a healthy, beautiful garden you can be proud of? The Glen Eira City Council is giving you a helping hand by offering free mulch to all its residents.

Why mulch?

Coming in organic and inorganic forms, mulch is one of the most important materials involved in maintaining the health of landscape plants. Organic mulch can consist of a variety of residue provided by nature. This commonly includes grass clippings, hay, straw, bark, wood chips, leaves and more. By applying layers of mulch, it offers the soil area protection and improves the health of the soil.

It does this in a number of ways:

• By shielding the soil from the sun, mulch slows the evaporation of moisture.
• As mulch is in itself weed-free, it impedes the growth of weeds.
• When organic mulch decays, it releases nutrients to the soil beneath.
• Mulch helps soil maintain an even temperature by keeping soil warm in winter, and cool in summer.
• Mulch helps prevent soil erosion.

To get the most out of mulch, gardeners often apply it in late spring or early summer when the temperature has risen, but the moisture content in soil is still relatively high.

Mulch can also help your garden look great by giving your soil an interesting, uniform colour and texture.

For all its benefits, there are a few potential health hazards you should be aware of when using mulch. Check out the city council's page on the risks involved and on how to collect your free mulch.

If you're looking for real estate in Bentleigh, give Matt Hurlston and the team at Ray White Carnegie a ring. We'll make sure you find a home with the yard of your dreams so you can start putting that free mulch to good use.