Should You Use Stone or Mulch? Homeowners who spend time and money on landscaping want a polished result. But there’s confusion regarding how best to cover the bare dirt around trees or flower beds. Mulch and stone have differences beyond appearance, and which you choose could impact the overall health of your plants. Mulch This common landscaping material has many benefits. It’s attractive, inexpensive, and easy to manage. Mulch is also healthy for your plants, trapping your topsoil and preventing it from washing away. Mulch also locks in nutrients and provides more as it breaks down and returns to the earth. It’s better at holding moisture, so you can spend less money watering your garden. But there can be too much of a good thing. Mulch piled excessively high can do more harm to your plants than good. Meanwhile, installing it may be inexpensive and convenient, but mulch should be removed and replaced every year, which adds up over time. Mulch can also attract insects or introduce new weeds into your landscape. Stone Rock lasts forever — or at least much longer than a human lifespan. The upfront cost is much higher than mulch, but it should be a one-time investment. Aside from an occasional wash, there’s no upkeep to worry about. The stone sits and continues looking great year after year. Still, stone has disadvantages, particularly for your plants. Unlike mulch, stone attracts heat, and your plants could die if they become too hot. Further, stone provides no benefit to your soil; it is purely decorative. While good rock cover will usually produce fewer weeds than mulch, some will almost certainly grow eventually, and they’ll be more challenging to destroy. Finally, if you ever decide to remove the stones, you’re in for a brutal task. Ultimately, mulch is usually best for active landscapes where you want plants to grow and thrive or intend to make regular changes. However, areas with little to no plant life are perfect for decorative stone. If you’re struggling to decide on the right finishing touch for your landscape, call Anthony’s Lawn Care and Landscaping. Our team of experts will be glad to help you make the best choice for your home and produce stunning results. The Best Material for Your Landscaping Job
Parents want to raise kind, happy, fulfilled, and
resilient children. And while thousands of parenting books discuss changing diapers, nutrition for growing tots, or even the ins and outs of a child’s brain, few resources exist to help parents raise mentally strong children. Before going any further, defining what “mentally strong” means is essential because teaching a child something you don’t
know yourself is nearly impossible.
What is mental strength? BetterUp, the world’s largest mental health and coaching startup, defines mental strength as “the cognitive and emotional skill of reframing negative thoughts and adverse circumstances.” Essentially, it’s a child’s ability to “turn that frown upside down” in a healthy way all on their own. Mentally strong children also experience less stress, more motivation, and increased adaptability. They’re better at viewing challenges and setbacks as temporary roadblocks instead of end-all-be-alls, and they can self-soothe in times of fear or anxiety. By internally reframing negative emotions, mentally strong children will grow to become adults who are more connected to their true selves. They are more motivated to push through anything that may stand in their way. So, how do you raise mentally strong kids? The answer is simple yet challenging. All the benefits mentioned are available to children as long as parents follow one simple rule: Let children solve their own problems. To many parents, the idea of leaving their children to suffer through hardship alone is terrifying, but the truth is that the more problems you solve for them, the less competent they become. Think about it. What does solving their problems for them teach? That when the going gets tough, their parents will sort it all out, and everything will be fine. As adults, however, we know this couldn’t be further from the truth. So, next time your children come to you with a problem, give them the task of solving it themselves. Ask them, “What do you think we should do about that problem?” and refrain from giving any advice until they’ve come up with a few ideas of their own! Your guidance and encouragement will help them build confidence in their own problem-solving skills.
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