Choosing an Organic Mulch

Posted by Jamie McIntosh May 19, 2008

I was sharing some gardening tips with a friend the other day who’s new to the hobby. I told her about my best-kept “secret,” which is getting a dump truck full of free mulch from the utility company as a byproduct of the tree trimming work they conduct. My friend innocently inquired if it has the same dark red color as the dyed hardwood mulch she prefers. I kept a poker face as I replied that no, alas, it does not.

There is an alternative for organic gardeners who are willing to pay premium prices for mulch that retains its beautiful dark color throughout the season. Cocoa bean hull mulch is a byproduct of the chocolate manufacturing process, rendering a lightweight soil cover that forms a porous mat in your garden. Although a 2-foot cubic bag costs around seven dollars, you only need to apply a one-inch layer over the soil to retain moisture and provide a cool root-run for your plants. You can expect a 2-foot cubic bag to cover about 20 square feet of garden space, so buy accordingly.

I can’t afford to carpet my entire garden with this mulch, but I do use cocoa bean shells around high-traffic areas that receive the most viewing from visitors. As the garden recedes, I apply cheaper mulch or even newspaper and cardboard.

A bonus of cocoa shell mulch is that it appears to repel cats, at least my cat. Max has executed some of his longest jumps ever in his attempts to keep his paws off that crackly textured mulch. A final word of warning: supervise your dog around cocoa bean mulch, as some are said to relish this inedible chocolate imitator as much as the real thing.