When to Mulch Your Garden for Your Healthiest Flowers and Plants Yet

Timing is everything when it comes to caring for your garden—a sentiment that's especially true for mulching. The task involves spreading mostly organic matter over the surface of your soil to protect it from weeds, improve moisture retention, prevent soil erosion, and provide insulation. But adding mulch to your yard at the wrong time, be it too early or too late, can have unintended consequences.

Before tackling this chore, make sure you know when the right time to mulch your garden is—it's just as important as knowing how to mulch.

When to Mulch Your Garden

The right time to mulch a garden is dependent on what type of plant material you are mulching and the weather conditions. In general, mid- to late-spring is mulching season; this is when the soil is warming up from the freezing temperatures it experienced all winter. Mulching too early will slow down the warming process, which the soil needs to do its job.

"Mulching during the early spring growing season reaps more than one benefit," says Caroline Bloomfield, manager of marketing communications at GardeningKnowHow.com. "It helps control weeds, keeps the soil from overheating as the weather changes, and holds in moisture."

How to Mulch Your Garden During Winter

Although spring is hands down the best time to mulch your garden, there are other times of year when gardeners like to lay down mulch. "Mulching newly-planted plants after the ground has frozen in early winter may prevent the plant from heaving during the freezing-thawing cycle over winter," Kurt Morrell, the AP farm associate vice president for landscape operations at the New York Botanical Garden.

Heaving happens when the pressure that is created from alternating freezing and thawing conditions lifts the soil and plants up and out of the ground. If you do choose to mulch your garden during winter, you should remove the organic matter gradually as the ground and temperatures warm—removing it all at once could startle the plant.

How to Mulch Your Garden During Fall

Mulching during fall also has it's own unique benefits. "When your annuals have died away and the perennials are going dormant in early fall, keep your plants' roots and their soil warm with a hefty layer of mulch," says Bloomfield. This will help keep weeds under control, prevent your soil from eroding, and retain moisture in the ground. Just make sure to remove the weeds before you lay down mulch.

While mulching in early fall is safe, you should never mulch during late fall. "This can insulate the ground and prevent plant dormancy," says Morrell. The much-needed hibernation helps plants survive the cold winter months.

How to Mulch During Summer

Laying down mulch in summer isn't necessary—especially if you don't live in an extremely hot climate—but it can help with soil moisture retention and suppress weeds. "If you do choose to mulch plants in the summer, be sure the mulch is not hugging the plants' stems or trunks, and that it's spread around the area of the plant's canopy," says Bloomfield. As a general rule, though, mulching during late spring and early fall is good enough.

What Not to Mulch

Gardeners rely on mulching because it helps soil stay moist and weed-free—just two of its many benefits. But there are precautions to take. "It's best to avoid mulching around plants that spread and trail, such as creeping thyme, grasses, and trailing vinca," says Bloomfield. You also should avoid mulching over any existing weeds as it just makes them healthier and more prolific.