The Magic of Mulch Webinar

by Lori Palmquist

I gave a UC Master Gardener webinar on July 16, 2024 that was co-sponsored by the Contra Costa County Library.

Here's the link to the recording: https://vimeo.com/997550117

In some of the other webinars I've given in the past few years, every time I mentioned mulch, the questions came flying in from the attendees. Greg Letts, who often works on my webinars answering questions in the background, likes to say, "Whenever Lori mentions mulch, the mulch hits the fan." Greg is a funny guy. And in fact, he helped me present in this webinar.

Because I've always known that mulch is an important player in the landscape water conservation game, I signed up late last year to give the mulch talk in July this year. And I found a 2020 webinar on mulch given to our Master Gardeners by Dr. James Downer, who is a UC researcher who's been conducting studies on mulch for more than 30 years. My first time through the webinar recording, I discovered from Dr. Downer that mulch is a HUGE water saver, and contributes stunningly to all healthy aspects of plants, soil, and soil microbes. I watched the recording all the way through two more times, hanging on his every word and taking copious notes. I got more excited about mulch by the minute!

Now I feel like mulch is the ultimate answer to not only water conservation, but to the reversal of climate change. And it's not just any mulch. We're talking about freshly cut tree and/or shrub trimmings that have been ground up by a chipper. Check out the webinar recording. I hope you end up as excited about mulch as I am.