• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Western Garden Centers

for what grows here

  • Home
  • How To
  • Gift Cards
  • Calculate Mulch
  • Locations
    • Store Hours
    • About
    • Garden Shop Employment Team
  • Weddings
    • Salt Lake City, UT
    • West Valley, UT
  • Blog
    • Gardening
    • Recipes

How to Calculate Mulch

April 2, 2016 by Western Gardens

How To Calculate Mulch

The first thing to do is figure out the area (in feet) of the space that needs mulch.  The most common shapes are rectangles, triangles and circles.

  • Rectangle: A = L x W (L=length, W=width)
  • Triangle: A = ½ x B x H (B=base, H=height)
  • Circle: A = πR²  (or 3.14 x R²) (R=radius)

The second thing to do is multiply the Area (that you just calculated) by the Depth you want (in inches).  So if you need 2 inches of mulch, multiply the area by 2.  If you want 3 inches of mulch, times it by 3.

The third thing to do is divide by 324.  This will tell you how many cubic yards of mulch you need for you garden!  

Let’s take a look at this with real numbers for a 17 x 20 rectangular flower bed needing 2 inches of mulch.

17 x 20 = 340

340 x 2 = 680

680 ÷ 324 = 2 cubic yards (rounded down from 2.09)

For a handy FREE cheat sheet of equations => CLICK HERE

One thing to keep in mind is that this will give you full coverage for the entire space.  If you have an empty bed, this will get you exactly what you need.  If you have plants in your bed, they will take some of the space we’ve just accounted for.  Since we don’t know how much space your plants take (unless you determine their area!), you may want to keep this in mind and buy a little less mulch for your beds.

But what if I have 3 flower beds?  What’s the easiest way to calculate mulch then? Just simply determine the area of all three beds, and then add them together.  Then continue the steps as outlined.

But what if I have an oddly shaped flower bed?  

Click NEXT to see what to do!

2  2

The following two tabs change content below.
  • Bio
  • Latest Posts
My Twitter profileMy Facebook profileMy Instagram profileMy Pinterest profileMy YouTube channel

Western Gardens

We are Utah's leading garden center along the Wasatch Front. We're passionate about gardening and helping you succeed! As a 3rd generation family-owned company, we have the knowledge and expertise to help you grow your best garden yet. Visit us in Downtown Salt Lake or West Valley for what grows here.
My Twitter profileMy Facebook profileMy Instagram profileMy Pinterest profileMy YouTube channel

Latest posts by Western Gardens (see all)

  • How to Prepare the Ground for your Garden - April 28, 2018
  • Pest Control – the Annoying Box Elder Bug - April 19, 2018
  • Keep Kids Safe from Poisonous Plants and Pesticides – Part 1 - April 14, 2018
Pages: Page 1 Page 2 Page 3

Filed Under: Gardening, How To Tagged With: Gardening, How To, Mulch, Utah

Previous Post: « April Gardening To-Do List
Next Post: 5 Plants for Utah Porch Pots »

Primary Sidebar

Shopping Cart

Items in Your Cart

Your cart is empty
Visit The Shop

Follow Western Gardens

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • YouTube

See what we’ve been pinning!

Follow Me on Pinterest
Followed by people.
?

Pinterest Badge by Skipser

Here’s What We’ve Been Up To!

Save water and money by Turf Training - train your lawn to grow deep roots
work at western gardens utah garden center
Senior gardening woman Edu Carvalho from Pexels
nursery center open to public

Copyright © 2025. Western Gardens - Privacy Policy