Help your garden out with Sugar Cane Mulch
By Kate - RAFF Group Nursery CSO, September 2024
Sugar cane mulch is a simple and cost-effective natural product that can work wonders for your garden.
It doesn’t matter what type of garden you’re working on, applying a layer of sugar cane mulch can provide a range of benefits for your garden, allowing your plants to thrive.
What is sugar cane mulch?
Sugar cane mulch is an organic byproduct from the sugar cane industry where the unused tips and leaves from harvested sugar cane plants are shredded. This sustainable source of mulch is an inexpensive product that is useful for gardeners looking to cover large areas with ease.
So how does it help my garden?
Covering your garden bed with sugar cane mulch provides a host of benefits such as helping retain moisture, keeping weeds down, providing protection from the elements and more.
Retain moisture
Applying an even layer (about 4cm to 10cm thick) on a freshly watered garden bed will help retain that much-needed moisture in the soil, helping your plants to thrive. This additional layer of mulch helps slow evaporation, making it more effective at conserving water and decreasing the amount of watering your garden requires.Keeps weeds at bay
By providing an additional layer over the garden bed, sugar cane mulch helps control weeds by smothering and shading them out, making it difficult for unwanted guests to take root. Blanketing the garden bed, sugar cane mulch provides a barrier that prevents unwelcomed weeds from propagating in your garden, stealing needed nutrients from your plants.Encourages earthworm and microorganism activity
Because of the organic nature of sugar cane mulch, it breaks down over time, providing much-needed carbon and nutrients that promote microorganism and earthworm activity.
Earthworms improve the soil quality and structure in the garden bed which in turn allows water to move more freely through the soil to the benefit of your plants.Provides protection against the elements
While the protective barrier of sugar cane mulch helps keep weeds out, it also acts as a blanket that helps keep the effects of extreme temperatures at bay. Sugar cane mulch’s reflective properties protect plants from the heat of the day but also help prevent soil erosion from heavy rain, providing the perfect blanket for Aussie summers.
How do I apply sugar cane mulch to my garden?
First, prepare your garden by removing all weeds in the area you will be applying your sugar cane mulch.
Spread a layer of mulch between 4cm to 10cm over the garden soil.
Form small rings of sugar cane mulch around the plants so that the sugar cane mulch isn’t touching the stems.
Hose the sugar cane mulch to enable better water retention and wind resistance.
Concluding thoughts
Sugar cane mulch is a cost-effective and accessible measure that can be used all year round compared to other organic and inorganic mulches.
Drop into your closest RAFF Group store today to snag a great deal on Rocky Point Sugar Cane Mulch for your garden.
Contact our team to learn more about our garden supplies
