Prices for bulk mulch?

spidey07

No Lifer
Aug 4, 2000
65,469
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I'm going to call around but wanted to know what the price differences between mulch really means and what price is acceptible.

I do know from the past that a full pallet of bags from home depot will cover everything. I figure you order it by the truck load and they just dump it on your driveway? Do you just secure it with a tarp?
 

Tobolo

Diamond Member
Aug 17, 2005
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The transport fee is the most expensive part. But why do you need so much mulch?
 

spidey07

No Lifer
Aug 4, 2000
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Originally posted by: SoulAssassin
mulch...it's mulch

yeah, blame the german in me.

I need this much because that's what it takes. Is "expensive" mulch worth it in terms of not needing to do it every year?
 

imported_hscorpio

Golden Member
Sep 1, 2004
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Lowes used to have huge boxes of kelogg mulch or topsoil that come on a pallet. I think they were around $50. If you have a truck with full size bed, just have them drop it in the bed with a forklift for no charge.
 

gsellis

Diamond Member
Dec 4, 2003
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1.5 yards of Cypress mulch are $40 from my landscape place. I have a trailer to carry it.
 

imported_weadjust

Golden Member
Apr 23, 2004
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It's free where I live. Tupelo, MS. The city re-cycles the trees and limbs and gives the mulch away. The will even load it for you 6 days a week.
 

spidey07

No Lifer
Aug 4, 2000
65,469
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76
So a yard is a cubic yard? 3x3x3 feet? That means 27 cubic feet in a yard.

That equals 13.5 x 2 square feet bags = 1 cubic yard?

Guess I can try to find a place that will deliver some nice cedar mulch. Would love to do the synthetic stuff, doesn't seem that beneficial to the soil though and more for look/maintenance.
 

Smartazz

Diamond Member
Dec 29, 2005
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Originally posted by: spidey07
I'm going to call around but wanted to know what the price differences between mulch really means and what price is acceptible.

I do know from the past that a full pallet of bags from home depot will cover everything. I figure you order it by the truck load and they just dump it on your driveway? Do you just secure it with a tarp?

Yeah, I think you can order it by the truckload then they'll dump it on your driveway. It takes a while before those piles disappear too.
 

spidey07

No Lifer
Aug 4, 2000
65,469
5
76
Originally posted by: bobsmith1492
Why do you need so mulch?

I have a lot of landscaping. The main thing is a HUGE flower garden in the back.

I'm doing a lot of work to get this stuff into shape - tilling soil, reclaiming/splitting plants. I want to do it right as it gets quite hot here in KY during the summer and the soil is clay.

I've got somebody to lay the mulch for me and weed, all I have to do is get it here.
 

richardycc

Diamond Member
Apr 29, 2001
5,719
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red cedar mulch is out, black mulch is in, I am using stone thou, do it once, and be done. mulch,you will have to keep adding more in a yr or so.
 

KK

Lifer
Jan 2, 2001
15,903
4
81
Originally posted by: richardycc
red cedar mulch is out, black mulch is in, I am using stone thou, do it once, and be done. mulch,you will have to keep adding more in a yr or so.

I agree, I used to do the mulch thing then I wisened up this past fall and went and got me a couple tons of river rock.
 

mugs

Lifer
Apr 29, 2003
48,920
46
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Last year I paid $20/yard with a minimum order of 5 yards (delivered).

This is the place I bought from: http://www.mulchsupply.com/index.php

They only service a few counties in NJ, but they have prices for a lot of stuff on their site.

Also see if your town gives away free mulch. My parents' town lets residents drop off brush and whatnot, and then they shred it and put it in a pile where residents can come and take mulch. Many other towns do the same. Of course, then you need a truck.
 

Squisher

Lifer
Aug 17, 2000
21,204
66
91
What kind of mulch?

Cedar chunks will last the longest, then cedar chips, then the fines. The problem with chunks and chips is that each year more and more un-decomposed wood will get mixed with the soil with it eventually resembling a kind of gravel.

Pine fines will decompose the fastest and become fully decomposed within the year and become part of the compost for next year.

All this decomposition uses nitrogen from the soil so you need to add more fertilizer as the breakdown gets faster. Otherwise, your plants will suffer.

I would think somewhere around $40/yd.
 

lightpants

Platinum Member
Aug 13, 2001
2,452
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I think a yard would be about the size of a small block chevy motor and an automatic transmission, that is, if we are comparing it to car parts.
It should be about $25-50 depending on what kind of mulch you get.
 

d33pt

Diamond Member
Jan 12, 2001
5,654
1
81
check with your city's recycling center or dump. it's free in san diego.
 

3chordcharlie

Diamond Member
Mar 30, 2004
9,859
1
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Originally posted by: spidey07
Originally posted by: SoulAssassin
mulch...it's mulch

yeah, blame the german in me.

I need this much because that's what it takes. Is "expensive" mulch worth it in terms of not needing to do it every year?

Not really worth it. Cedar and some kinds of treated pine do tend to last a little better, but still fade, while the regular dyed pine (the bright red stuff many businesses use, but it comes in other colours, too) will tend to fade quickly. In any event, you should be able to reapply with something in the neighborhood of half as much mulch in the second and subsequent years, but if you want it to stay looking good, you have to do it every year.

If you want good coverage, you're probably looking at about 150 sq ft per yard, with an average amount of plantings.