If you are trying to decide whether you want to put rocks or mulch down in your garden here are a few things to consider:

Rock Pros & Cons

Rock: Pros

  • Aesthetics: clean, minimalist, modern – lots of colors to choose from along with shapes and sizes
  • One Time Cost for product and labor
  • Low Maintenance

Rock: Cons

  • Holds Heat
  • Doesn’t allow the plants to reach their full growth potential
  • Can be more expensive up front than mulch
  • Requires a weed barrier
  • More weeds grow through
  • Color stays the same until you remodel your landscape

Mulch Pros & Cons

Mulch: Pros

  • Holds moisture and feeds the plants as it decomposes
  • Allows the plants to grow to their full potential
  • Doesn’t require a weed barrier
  • Fewer weeds grow through
  • Can be Less expensive up front than rock
  • Can change up the color easily, each year you could choose a different mulch color if you wanted

Mulch: Cons

  • More maintenance
  • Higher long term cost: must be replaced every year or two
  • Potential of weed seeds

Still not sure which is right for you? Here’s another way to look at it:

Financial Perspective

Do It Yourself

Generally, mulch is more expensive overtime while rock can cost more upfront.

Hire It Done

In addition to the cost of mulch overtime, you will also have the cost of labor to have it replaced every 1-3 years.

Frequent Landscape Remodels

If you like to change the look of your garden or landscape on a regular basis (more than every 15-20 years) then you might want to consider mulch, rock has to be removed by hand which will either result in high labor costs or large amounts of time spent by you to remove them. If you want to change the color, size, or shape of the rocks, you will have that additional cost as well.

Environmental Perspective

Environmentally Friendly

If you are environmentally conscious, then you will want to strongly consider mulch as the base for your garden bed. It is made of compost and will not only keep your garden cooler, but help to fee the plants that are growing in it. It will trap moisture to nourish the plants on warmer days and will break down into rich soil to help them grow to their full potential.

Daily Maintenance

Weed Maintenance

Mulch is a natural weed barrier and will result in fewer weeds popping up throughout your garden, however you do need to watch for weed seedlings in the much do to it’s organic nature. Rocks require a weed barrier to be laid underneath the mulch to prevent the weeds from growing through. While rocks do a great job at preventing weeds when they are first laid, they will not protect against them overtime as the wind displaces them, and sediment settles in between them.

Water Maintenance

Mulch hols in water and will feed the plants on hot, dry days allowing you to go further between waterings/rainfalls. Rocks trap heat and will start to dry the ground beneath the rock and dehydrate the plants so it is important to keep up with watering if the rain isn’t falling.

Conclusion

While rocks have grown in popularity due to the large variety of colors, shapes, and sizes along with their low physical and financial maintenance, mulch is still the winner for not only the environment, but the plants in your garden as well.