When to apply mulch?

[cookiesdaddy]

Another newbee here gardening in San Jose, California. I'm growing tomatoes, squash and eggplants on 6" raised beds. They seem to do OK so far.

The question is is it time to apply mulch yet?

I read somewhere that you should wait until the weather gets hotter before applying mulch, so that the soil gets a chance to warm up. Mulching will function as an insulation layer and you don't want to apply too soon. Is this true? How long should I wait?

Secondly, I have a large amount of fresh wood chips available that I will use as mulch. How thick a layer of stuff (how many inches) should I apply on top of the soil?

THANKS!

 

[lesa]

Keep in mind those wood chips aren't going to disappear into your soil, after one growing season... If you are set on using them, you might want to plan to remove them in the fall...
I am sure your soil is already warm, isn't it? If you are using the mulch for water retention and weed barrier, I would say a couple inches thick should be fine...

 

[journey11]

I usually mulch once the weather is consistently in the 70's or so. Spring is an objective thing in this state. It goes straight from freezing cold to hot and muggy here!

I'd put down some wet newspaper first, then put on at least 3" of the wood chips. Lesa is right, you'll probably have to rake them off in the fall and compost them separately (mixed with lots of manure.) That's not a bad thing though.