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Do you water the mulch in your garden paths?

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Posted by patchworkfarm 6 CT (My Page) on
Fri, Jul 8, 11 at 11:10

My vegetable beds are mulched with grass clippings and I do provide supplemental watering if I'm experiencing a period of dry weather.

However, my paths are mulched with newpaper and hay, and until this morning we had not seen a substantial rain in over 2 weeks.

Yesterday, as I was walking around the garden the paths were actually crunchy. Since my plants were thriving, I hestitated to waste the water to soak down essentially fallow areas.

This morning's rain corrected the situation, but I'm curious if it is necessary or desirable to water mulched areas when they get especially dry. Am I creating a fire hazard by not watering these areas? Are the dry paths wicking away moisture from my beds? Just curious on what others do . . .

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RE: Do you water the mulch in your garden paths?

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  • Posted by jolj 7b/8a-S.C.,USA (My Page) on
    Fri, Jul 8, 11 at 11:29

No, unless you turn it like a compost pile.
Then I would wet it before & after turning.

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RE: Do you water the mulch in your garden paths?

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If you supply enough moisture to the mulch on those paths then you will see plants germinating there, something you probably do not want. There is no need to water the paths.

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RE: Do you water the mulch in your garden paths?

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Thanks for the responses. I'm definitely mulching for weed suppression (vs. composting).

Thanks again.

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