Cocoa Bean Shell Mulch - For Our Front Yard 2020

Once again, I'm going with Cocoa Bean Shell mulch in our front yard this year.  On a recent trip to Wisconsin, I stopped at the Hull Farm outside of Lake Geneva and bought ten bags.  They sell it for about 50% the cost of Menards, so buying direct is worth the trip if you are buying in bulk.

We first saw the French using Cocoa Bean Shell mulch in the beds at Luxembourg Gardens in Paris last year and ever since, it has become something that I wanted to bring to our home garden.   Last year, I applied bags of the stuff to the front beds and around a couple of trees.  This year, I'm going to replicate that plan and use it just on the front yard beds - to keep the cost in control and to keep it away from Lizzie.  I'll post some photos of the beds once I put the cocoa bean shells (or hulls) down on top of the existing mulch/shells.

There are a couple of things that I like about this particular kind of mulch including the 'mat' that gets created as a weed barrier and how they turn a nice dark color as they age. I think the small size of the shells makes a really nice look once applied to the beds.   Check out the full FAQ from Hull Farm for all the details.