Melaleuca Mulch - Florida Native Plants



1. The melaleuca tree was originally planted by the Army Corp of Engineers around the edges of the Everglades in the early 1920's as a way of drying the "swamps". This tree has become a pest because it proliferates at an enormous rate and out competes native vegetation.

2. It cannot be planted now, but large numbers still grow in and around the Everglades representing a threat to the natural vegetation. By using melaleuca mulch you will contribute to the elimination of this pest.		3. If you use melaleuca mulch, you will not be using bald cypress mulch. To obtain this mulch bald cypress trees in north Florida are literally mined. The mulch is not obtained from scraps of trees used for other purposes, but from trees cut down for the purpose of producing mulch.


4. The enormous quantities of cypress mulch produced are a threat to the survival of this beautiful native tree. We don't think anyone interested in native plants will want to have cypress trees destroyed for the sake of obtaining mulch .