Starting a vegetable garden can be a rewarding prospect for any homeowner. In addition to having fresh veggies on the ready, digging in the dirt has big health benefits. Though yanking out weeds might ...

If you need to top up the mulch in your garden, you might be faced with the choice between using pine bark or pine straw.

Straw mulch is great for gardens. It locks in moisture, smothers weeds, and feeds plants. But it might also cause one of the ...

In some areas of the country, the choice between mulching with pine needles and wood mulch is a tough one. Since the 1980s, pine straw has been the favorite mulch in the South. It is inexpensive, ...

Wood mulch and wood chips will mat down to make a firm but spongy surface for your garden paths and around playsets. Pine straw is too slippery to walk on, so skip it when mulching these high-traffic ...

Mulch is miraculous stuff. It keeps weeds at bay, fertilizes the soil, and minimizes the effects of too-hot (or too-cold) temperatures. Certain types even repel pests. But the single best argument for ...

Gardening experts explain why mulch is important in the winter, when and how much to apply, and the benefits of mulch.

Nature has a simple and effective process for feeding and enriching the earth. When plants die or drop their leaves, the organic matter decomposes and returns nutrients to the soil. During the winter, ...

A research team reports that black carbon formed during crop straw burning can significantly reduce the spread of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) ...