About the only summer curb appeal improvement project that I am considering is replacing my mulch with landscaping rock.
Who would have thought choosing between mulch and rock would be column-worthy. I know … compared to the bigger issues of the day, this issue isn’t on most people’s radar screen.
From the get-go I want to be clear I am not much of a fan when it comes to using landscaping rock. But after year after year after year of having to replenish the mulch that the winds of Rock County have blown away, the rock has a “stay in place” appeal.
For whatever reason, cleaning up the previous year’s mulch that the winds have scattered to the far corners of our lawn, this might be the year I ditch the mulch.
My reluctance to putting down rock is that while rock should be “a one and done” kind of thing, it isn’t. Using landscaping rock should be like Ron Popeil’s Rotisserie oven … you “set it and forget it.” But also, like Ron always said while selling his latest product, “But wait! There’s more!” and that is the major flaw in using rock. It’s called the dreaded weeds that always seem to find their way into the rocks.
Most of the yards that I see landscaped with rock look nice, but the ones that don’t really look bad, and to get them looking good again is a real pain in the butt.
Other considerations to keep in mind with the rock versus mulch debate are cost, color choices, and no doubt a bag of mulch is a lot less cumbersome than a wheelbarrow of rock.
Maybe the best choice to make while I ponder rock versus mulch would be to dig out the Popiel Pocket Fisherman and head down to the lake for the afternoon.
Here are a couple of Ron Popiel facts according to Google.
Ron died about a year ago at the age of 86 with a net worth of $200 million. The Popiel Rotisserie was by far his best seller with over 7 million units sold. The Pocket Fisherman was really his dad’s invention, and with Ron’s television informercials they sold over two million Pocket Fisherman.
Too bad Ron wasn’t around today … maybe he could invent mulch that wouldn’t blow away.