When you think of bark mulch what comes to mind? What color do I want? Where should I get it? Will they deliver it? Perhaps you are wondering about that sharp black truck you saw with BARK on the license plate? 

Why should I mulch?

Why do we mulch? Besides the fact that mulch can add beauty to your landscape, mulch also protects and insulates the soil, keeping it cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter, protecting the roots of our plants. Mulch helps to retain moisture in the soil thus providing more nourishment to the surrounding plants. Mulch can act as a weed and pest deterrent. And perhaps most important, a high-quality mulch will decompose over its life, returning nutrients to the soil below while providing a healthy home for plant life.

My Box Store Mulch isn’t Natural?

Although it’s natural to think that mulch is mulch, one of the biggest differences is that most mulch is not natural at all. In fact, it’s far more common to find wood-based mulches to be colored or dyed red, brown or black. Colored mulch is typically made from waste wood grinding and then colored to a finished product. These colored wood-based mulch products are typically very affordable, and due to the price point are readily available.

Our Smith From the Forest Organic Pine Bark Mulch

Bark mulch or as we prefer to call it Smith From the Forest Organic Pine Bark Mulch, starts life as 100% raw bark.  Raw bark is removed from logs during the debarking process as the logs are prepared for sawing.  We source raw bark from mills in northern Maine and Quebec and transport the raw bark to our Marshfield facility with our fleet of tractor-trailers. Then the magic begins, the bark is stockpiled, aged and the (…secret manufacturing process ….) happens, right here in Marshfield. The result, pure bark mulch – no additives required! The real secret is attention to detail and genuine care about the quality of the finished product. The attention to detail is in the aging process, as this initiates the decomposition process and gives the bark mulch its rich color, the fragrance, and its natural ability to richen the soil with nutrients.

Contact Us!

There’s so much more that we’d like to share on mulch, loam, firewood, power equipment, seed, and fertilizers, be sure to stay tuned for our next blog! And be sure to stop by and see the pros at D.H. Smith and Sons at 887 Plain Street Marshfield, MA or give us a call at 781-294-1230 and be sure to give those shiny black truck drivers a friendly wave!