Modern gardeners use mulches to improve the appearance of their gardens and control and maybe limit the growth of undesired species like weeds. Appropriately utilized, you may be able to enhance water retention. Among the most mulches, cedar and cypress mulch are on the top.
Cedar and cypress mulches are the two best options, but they differ in terms of many factors, which I have also explained below with the differences.
At first, let’s get an idea about what cedar and cypress mulches actually are:
Cedar Mulch
Cedar mulch is the mulch obtained from cedar tree hardwood and bark shreds.
Cedar is an excellent hardwood mulch that is good for the environment because it is often cultivated organically without pesticides.
Since cedar trees overgrow and may be replanted after harvesting to help maintain the tree population, cedar is more eco-friendly.
Cedar mulch is the best choice if you’re seeking a sustainable alternative. Also, there are different cedar mulches available in the market to make a good choice.
Best Features:
- 100% Natural Cedar; Use with your outdoor and indoor plants; will hold moisture in!
- Use as an air freshener; natural subtle cedar scent; Refill your cedar sachet bags; Made in USA
- Put in animal bedding; Put in kitty litter; absorbs smelly odors
- Great for hanging planters, essential home accessories
Cypress Mulch
Cypress mulch is a mulch made of bark, limbs, and ground-up leaves.
A less expensive alternative that is equally well-liked by gardeners all around the state is cypress mulch. It contains ground-up leaves, cypress tree bark, branches, and the tree’s stem.
For many years, cypress has been top-rated mulch, but recently, because of its effects on the environment, it has gained some attention.
Best Features:
- PURE CYPRESS mulch with no other wood chips like cedar or pine, which can be toxic to your pet
- MAINTAINS HUMIDITY better than aspen, lessening the chances of stressful fluctuations
- MOLD RESISTANT unlike other substrates that aren’t meant for higher humidity
- EXTRA SOFT doubled milled fibers that won’t damage pets’ skin and is great for burrowing and providing natural enrichment
Main Difference of Cedar vs Cypress Mulch
You might be asking which one is the best mulch for your garden because both can be great options.
The main difference between these two mulches is their availability, repelling capacity against insects, decomposition speed, odor, capacity to remove pollutants in the air, price, inflammability, and color fading over time.
All these factors are listed below against each other which certainly justify the differences between cedar and cypress mulch in terms of their benefits and drawbacks.
Comparison of Benefits of Cedar Mulch vs Cypress
Both cedar and cypress mulch has some benefits. Here are the benefits of Cedar and cypress Mulch listed against each other so you can differentiate their benefits.
| Cedar Mulch | Cypress Mulch |
|---|---|
| Cedar mulch is an excellent weed barrier when spread at a thickness of 3 inch | Cypress mulch is an excellent weed barrier when spread at a thickness of 3 inch |
| Excellent termites and insect repellent | – |
| It is small in size, making it good on slopy lands | Being heavy makes it a fantastic option for gardens with slopes |
| Discourages most fungus and bacterial attacks | Discourages most fungus and bacterial attacks |
| Cedar mulch’s small pieces stick together making it good for soil suffering from erosion problems | Cypress mulch covers the soil well where erosion is a problem |
| – | A pleasant odor |
| Has a longer shelf life | Has a long shelf life |
| More eco-friendly | More eco-friendly |
| Easily available as byproducts of paper mill factory and wood barks milling | – |
| Cedar mulch decomposes slowly compared to cypress mulch | – |
| Adds healthy nutrients to soil on decomposition over time | Adds healthy nutrients to soil on decomposition over time |
| – | It does not lose its color over time |
| – | It filters out pollutants in the air naturally |
Comparison of Drawbacks of Cedar Mulch vs Cypress
Both cedar and cypress mulch have some drawbacks. Here are the drawbacks of Cedar and cypress mulch listed against each other so you differentiate their drawbacks.
| Cedar Mulch | Cypress Mulch |
|---|---|
| Expensive | – |
| Can catch fire easily | Can catch fire easily |
| – | Can be a cause of less forestation, as it is hard to get mulch from hardwoods |
| Make plants nitrogen-deficient and hence killing them | Make plants nitrogen-deficient and hence killing them |
| Repels beneficial insects in the garden | – |
| – | Cypress mulch decomposes faster than cedar mulch |
| Had a bad odor that people don’t like smelling | – |
| It loses its color over time and becomes a dull grey | – |
| It does not filter out pollutants in the air naturally | – |
| – | It does not repel insects or termites efficiently |
| Bad mulch as it doesn’t retain water in it to prevent moisture loss in the soil | Bad mulch as it doesn’t retain water in it to prevent moisture loss in the soil |
So, Which Is Better Cedar or Cypress Mulch?
While costing less than cedar mulch, cypress mulch performs the same function. It’s exceptionally unsustainable, though, and buying it contributes to the deterioration of wetland habitats.
Cypress mulch is fantastic, inexpensive mulch for any garden if you don’t mind.
Cedar mulch is far more sustainable if you don’t mind spending a little more. It has a more intense aroma than cypress, although some people are sensitive to the wood’s inherent oils. Using cedar is the most environmentally friendly option, even if it can lose its color and degrade a little faster.
Also, cedar mulch is compared with hardwood mulch but still, cedar mulch is a winning product.
However, I will leave it up to you to decide as all the benefits and drawbacks of cedar and cypress mulches are listed above.
