Mulch is the least glamorous part of a landscape and one of the most functional. In Florida it is doing real work: holding moisture through a dry March, keeping root zones from cooking in August, and suppressing the weed pressure that would otherwise take a bed over in a single wet season.
Pine bark
Pine bark is a solid all-round choice. It holds its colour reasonably well, breaks down at a moderate pace and improves soil as it does, and it stays put better than finer mulches on gentle slopes. It suits most residential beds and is widely available in nugget and shredded grades — nuggets last longer, shredded knits together better.
Pine straw
Pine straw is light, inexpensive and excellent on slopes, where it mats together and resists washing out in heavy rain. It is also acidic as it breaks down, which suits azaleas, camellias and other acid-loving plants. The trade-off is longevity: it compresses and decomposes faster than bark, so it needs topping up more often.
Melaleuca
Melaleuca mulch is worth knowing about specifically because it is made from a Florida invasive species — using it supports removal of a tree that causes real ecological damage here. It resists termites better than most options, holds together well, and lasts a long time. If you want the most Florida-appropriate choice available, this is it.
Eucalyptus
Eucalyptus mulch comes from fast-growing plantation trees, which makes it a sustainable option. It holds colour well and breaks down slowly. It is a reasonable choice where you want longevity and a consistent look.
Why we steer people away from cypress
Cypress mulch is common and cheap, and there is a good reason to skip it. Much of it comes from whole cypress trees harvested out of wetland forests that take generations to recover and that provide flood buffering the state genuinely needs. It also tends to form a water-repellent crust as it dries, which means rain runs off the bed instead of soaking in — the opposite of what mulch is meant to do.
How much, and where not to put it
Two to three inches is the target. Thinner than that and weeds push straight through; thicker and you start suffocating roots and holding too much moisture against the crown. The other rule matters just as much: keep mulch pulled back a few inches from trunks and stems. Piling it against a trunk — the so-called mulch volcano — traps moisture against the bark, invites rot and encourages roots to circle at the surface. Flat and level, never mounded.