Every gardener or plant lover knows the importance of water in not only the growing of plants, but in helping them to thrive.

If you’re looking for a great way to add a lot of humus and environment for healthy soil bacteria, mulching is an excellent longterm plan for your edible landscape or garden.

Mulching not only protects the ground from the drying rays of the sun and harsh winds, but it also absorbs and retains moisture that can slowly be released over a longer period of time. It also breaks down to feed the plants, is organic, and is widely available.

Here are some tips on how to deep mulch your edible landscape or garden.

Ground covers are often called “living mulch” and it is for a reason. Low-growing plants that shade the ground serve a similar function as chipped tree mulch or pine straw except that you get plants in this scenario.

Ground covers to add to your garden or edible landscape for preventing the sun from shining directly on the soil include ornamental grasses, strawberries, and herbs like lavender, oregano, and sage. This gives a lot of options for protecting the moisture in your soil from evaporation regardless of whether you choose to wait for rain or water your gardens yourself.

Ground covers can stay in place like comfrey or lavender or spread like strawberry plants, sage, or oregano. For a softer, more meadow-like feel to your garden or edible landscape, spreading plants will do that work well, and quickly.

If you’re looking for a more structured look for your garden or edible landscape, plants like comfrey, horseradish,

More shade means less evaporation (from the soil). Less evaporation means more water staying in the soil and the root zones of your plants.

Besides the ground covers mentioned above, plants that are excellent at providing fast-growing shade to your edible landscape or garden include:

• Bamboo(s)
• Phormium tenax
• Camellias & Gardenias

Take keeping your garden moist with the least amount of work and maintenance to the next level by adding a garden pond. There are lots of landscaping companies that do pond installations and of course, there are also pond experts to get the job done.

You’ll want to think about the hardscaping and design of your pond, where water collects naturally in your garden, and how you’ll get the water from your pond to your plants.

You can do this the simplest way by using watering cans to hand water whenever there is a drought in your garden, by using a water pump, or by designing your pond with a natural, clay bottom that feeds moisture into the ground without your assistance, so that you may sit back and wait for rain.

Plants and soil can only absorb water at a certain rate so there is little benefit in watering your garden or edible landscape with the full force of your sprinkler or water hose.

The areas beneath your planters will be completely blocked from receiving sunlight. Which, of course, is terrible for any grass underneath your planters, but is an excellent way to add dimension and structure to your garden or landscape while also preserving some of the moisture in it.

Plastic planters and ceramic or glazed planters also hold moisture in them better than the ground as there is less–or no– drainage, if your planters are lacking drainage holes.

Ollas–or terracotta pots that lack drainage holes– have been used for centuries to create small wells of water that are dug into the ground around plant roots and slowly drip water into the soil using osmosis through the clay pots.