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Fall Mulching: 4 Benefits Of Mulching In The Fall

Resources: Seasonal Tree Care, Tree Maintenance

Fall Mulching 1Fall Mulching is one of the easiest, quickest, and most cost-effective things you can do to protect your trees through these upcoming cold months.

Although mulch can be applied year-round, Fall is a critical time for mulching. In fact, there are 4 specific benefits that you will receive from Fall Mulching.

1. Moisture Retention:

Winter is typically a very dry season which is why retaining moisture is so important to healthy soil and root growth. Without mulch the dry winter air will draw water up from the subsoil which then evaporates into the air. With mulch you trap the dew and water drawn up from the subsoil not allowing it to evaporate but instead cycling it back into the soil.


2. Insulates Soil:

Fall mulching insulates soil, providing warmer soil temperature. Warmer soil temperatures allow organisms such as earthworms and microbes to stat active longer into the cold season which improves you soil. Moderate soil temperature will also promote earlier spring root growth and prevent heaving of the soil from frost.


3. Insulates Tree & Plant Roots:

Unlike the colder parts of the United States, our fall and winters tend to cycle through freezing and thawing periods. These cycles put stress on tree and plant roots. You can mitigate this stress by insulating your trees roots with mulch which moderates the temperature swings our area experiences.


4. Suppress Winter Weeds:

Although we don’t think much of weeds in the fall and winter, weed seeds can still germinate during this time. Using mulch you can suppress these winter weeds and give your plant/tree beds a head start on keeping our weeds in the spring.


Need Help With Fall Mulching?

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Or Call Us At 703-573-3029


mulch around treesHow To Apply Mulch:

Now that you know the benefits of winter mulching it’s time to make sure you’re actually mulching correctly! We see a lot of incorrect mulching around the area which can cause more damage to the tree than benefits. Make sure you’re mulching correctly by following our tips below.  

 Size: The best mulching goes out as far as the drip line of the tree. However, this isn’t reasonable for most homeowners with large trees. If this isn’t practical, apply mulch in a 2 to 3-foot radius around the tree instead.

Depth: About 2-4 inches

  • Do not pile the mulch against the trunk of the tree. Instead keep it away from the trunk, so that the root flare zone is visible.
  • To refresh the look of mulch, lightly rake the top layers of the mulch, or simply remove the old mulch and replace with new mulch. Don’t pile new layers on top of old ones.
  • Do not use fresh wood chips for mulching around young trees. Fresh wood chips have a higher acidity and can injury a young tree.

Before you start your Fall Mulching don’t forget to read our Mulch Madness: 5 Common Mulching Mistakes article.

Interested in learning more about mulching in general? Check out our Mulching Around Trees article.

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Grey Burkhart
March 29, 2022.
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Very professional review of our requirements and an accurate estimate. Showed up on time and were finished quickly. Cleaned up all of the debris and sawdust. Great job all around.
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March 8, 2022.
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We have used RTEC Treecare for several years. They do excellent work. Their staff is extremely knowledgeable and take great care in explaining the various options available for your particular situation. I highly recommend them.
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Annette Iannucci
February 23, 2022.
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We have been using RTEC for years and were very pleased with the recent tree maintenance work they did for us. As always, we got good advice from their arborist Ben,. The crew that did the work is highly skilled, and they did a great job trimming our trees. They worked safely and efficiently, in addition to leaving the yard clean after they finished the work.
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January 26, 2022.
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RTEC was at my house today to removed a large Magnolia that was badly damaged by the recent snow. They did a fantastic job at a very reasonable price. They arrived right on time, worked efficiently and quickly and cleaned up so well it was hard to tell anything have been disturbed. Over the past several years, I have used RTEC for all the services I checked above, and have always been very pleased with their service and professionalism. I also appreciate that they are not eager to take down trees that don't need to come down. In this case, the damage was too extensive for the tree to recover.
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January 20, 2022.
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Once again, RTEC has done a great job. The team showed up right on time and performed all the work that we agreed to. They kept us informed as to progress, coordinated with us concerning our maple, and made recommendations concerning ongoing support for our trees. At the end of the day, they thoroughly cleaned up the debris and left our yard in pristine condition. WELL DONE.
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Not our first time but this time was tricky removal of a large dead tree leaning on a healthy tree. Quick response for estimate, good timing to removal, all clear and healthy tree still fine.
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December 16, 2021.
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We’ve used RTEC for many years for tree maintenance and can’t say enough good things about their service. We use them for tree trimming and for regular treatments to maintain our trees’ health and deal with pests and prevent disease. Their arborist Ben has been especially helpful with advice. RTEC also been especially helpful in emergency situations, once coming to cable a massive, heritage oak in our yard right before a hurricane was about to hit. Highly recommend.
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December 10, 2021.
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RTEC did an excellent job onsite of removing dead branches from our 80+ year old trees, and trimming other growth too close to our home.
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