Five Advantages of Cedar Mulch

There are many types of mulch. One of the most popular is cedar mulch. This type of mulch has many advantages when compared to other varieties. Some of these advantages include stability, nutrients, and its affect on insects. This article will discuss some of the advantages of using cedar mulch.

Insects

One of the first advantages of cedar mulch is its affect on insects. Many organic mulches harbor insects such as termites, roaches, and crickets. Cedar is a naturally aromatic material, so it helps to repel many types of insects. Most insects don’t like living in cedar mulch because of its fragrance. In addition to its affect on insects, this type of mulch also helps control the temperature.

Temperature

Cedar mulch is a naturally light color. This helps control the air temperature around your plants. Cedar mulch protects your plants from extreme temperatures that affect the surrounding ground. This helps keep plants cool during the summer, while keeping them from freezing during the winter months.

Stability

Another advantage of cedar mulch is its stability. Bark mulch is bulkier can can easily be washed away by heavy rains. Cedar mulch is shredded into tiny bits unlike bark mulch. These tiny pieces will lock together and form a dense mat. This allows it stay in place better when it is exposed to heavy wind and rain. Besides being more stable than other types, this mulch also helps control weeds better.

Weeds

Cedar mulch is also a good choice to protect against weeds. This mulch suppresses weeds that are already growing by denying them access to sunlight. It also prevents the germination of seeds when it is applied deeply enough. As mentioned earlier, cedar mulch is naturally fragrant. This aroma also helps prevent weed germination.

Nutrients

One of the final advantages of cedar mulch is the nutrients they provide to plants. As you already know, the wood is shredded. This allows cedar mulch to decompose very quickly. When the mulch decomposes, it enriches the soil by supply organic matter to the soil.

These are some of the advantages of using cedar mulch. It is naturally aromatic, so most insects won’t like living in the area. Cedar mulch is also shredded into tiny pieces that lock together, so they will stay in place better when it is exposed to heavy wind and rain. This type of mulch also decomposes very quickly to provide the soil with vital nutrients.

Not a bad day at all.  I ended up picking up Lucas and we went to lunch with Tony McMetal.  Our destination for today was none other than Santa Fe Taco in Northampton.  If you haven’t hit this place to eat yet, head on down to Main Street in Northampton and do yourself a favor.  We were even treated today by the owner, none other than Mike Tatasciore!  So far, I have never been disappointed going to eat here from their tacos, wings, enchiladas, black beans and burritos.  These are just some of the delicious items on the menu.  Even though today isn’t Tuesday, the Tuesday special is buy three tacos, get one free.  This is some good eating in my honest opinon.  Add some of their homemade salsa, and you just kicked it up!  If you like Chili Relleno’s, we learned today that they are shipped in fresh from New Mexico!  Mike and his staff offer some great food and quality service.  Two thumbs up from Lucas and I.  Check out the website at www.santafetaconorthampton.weebly.com.  They are open every day to the public except for Monday’s.

A quick FYI for you all, We Rock For Autism is heading to The Gin Mill in Northampton on April 13!  Four great bands on tap this year!  I will be writing more about this next week when we officially release all the information!  A quick thanks to all that helped out putting this years show together!

Don’t forget, we turn our turn our clocks ahead on March 10th!  I know I know, it’s only Feb 21, but spring will be on us before we know it!  Oh yeah, does that me we lose an hour off the Allentown St. Patty’s Day Bar Crawl??? 

Have a great one!

I hope your all well. I am sure now that spring is around the corner, I will be writing more about stuff. I guess the question is “what stuff will be considered stuff?”

Have a great rest of the weekend everyone!

Matt

Just some quick hits on what is happening this coming weekend.  First off, tomorrow night brings us The Matt Metal Show!  I am sure we will be playing some brand new Accept along with some new Hellyeah which was recently released earlier this week.  You can find Suzy, Tedd, and I on 90.3FM WXLV or for you out of town listeners, check us out at http://www.wxlvradio.com or you can download the free iPhone or iPad app if you search WXLV.  That’s right, I said FREE!!!!!!!!!!  Show time is from 6pm to 9pm!  You can call in your requests or “like” us on Facebook and post up your request!  You can also follow us on twitter @mattmetal3.

Saturday brings us the 2012 We Rock For Autism.  I know that my radio genre is metal, but I like many different kinds of music and I think that we put together a great lineup of local musicians for this show.  This show features The James Supra Band, The Large Flowerheads, Dina Hall, and Jake Kaligis and The New Constitution.  I am blessed that artists such as these are donating their time for a great cause.  The benefit will be held once again at The Gin Mill in Northampton.  Doors open at 5:15pm, show starts at 6pm.  The show is 21 and over.  Cover is $5.  I would like to personally thank George and his staff from The Gin Mill for allowing us to make this our home for this event, R&R sound, the bands and to everyone else that is helping out this night.  I hope to see you all there this coming Sat night!

Endzone returns their brand of music to The Peppercorn Pub in Coopersburg.  If you have never been to an Endzone show, you are in for a great night of music, fun, drinks, and friends.  I promise you this, you will have a good time!

Full Metal Racket is heading back out to rock Jabberjaws in Allentown off of its foundation.  Full Metal Racket covers some of the best metal songs of the 80′s till today!  With the members of the bands schedules of playing with other projects, Full Metal Racket is not out as much as they used to be, so if you can hit this up, please do so.

Lastly, Clutch along with Hellyeah, Kyung, and MonstrO will be heading into Atlantic City on Saturday night and to The Sherman Theater on Tuesday April 17th.  I wish I could attend either show, but it’s just not going to happen.  I love Clutch’s music and their concert is just jammed packed with an energy that is tough to match.  If you go to this show, have a great time.  Maybe I will be able to join you on their next go around.

Have a great weekend everyone!  Don’t forget to drop by Suzy’s website at http://www.lehighvalleyweatherpatrol.com for your daily and weekly forecast!

Just saying……

Hey!!!!  I won the Blog of the year for from the mcall.com contest!!!!  Thanks to all of you that voted.  The honor is greatly appreciated.

I just wanted to let all of you know that on Saturday night at Jimmy’s Place is an all female fronted band lineup.  The Damsels Of Darkness Tour 2012 will be heading into town featuring Apocryfiend, Necromance, Our Ashes Remain, Pool of Thorns, and Save The Zombies.  This is the second show on a six week tour which started in Trenton NJ.  This is an 18 and over show with it being 21 and over to drink.  Tickets for this show are $8 in advance.  If you have any questions about this gig, please contact Aleigh Evens at aleighaevens@yahoo.com.

There is a change in the Sinister Realm, Beyond Eden and Birds of Prey show for the weekend.  Due to a conflict which I will not comment on here, the scheduled show at The Gin Mill for Saturday night has been cancelled.  Due to this cancellation, Slik Helvetika will not be playing on the reschedule date of Friday night April 6th.  This is the new date for the three bands to play at it will be held at Jabberjaws in Allentown.  Cost for this show is $5 at the door.  The show should start around 9pm.

Once again, don’t forget to tune into The Matt Metal Show on Friday night’s on 90.3FM WXLV.  If you are not local, check us out at http://www.wxlvradio.com or you can hook up with our free app on your iPhone or iPad.  Even your droid phones can pick up the app!  We are on from 6-9 every Friday night!  Also, for all your weather needs, check out http://www.lehighvalleyweatherpatrol.com!  Our girl Suzy would greatly appreciate this!

Have a great day!!!

Just saying….

Well, you don’t have to be a homeowner for this info, but I hope that it serves you well.  First off, The Spring Home Show will be this coming weekend at Stabler Arena and Rauch Field House located on the sports complex of Lehigh University.  Hundreds of business will converge this coming weekend with displays on all types of items to help you fix up your home.  The show starts this Friday evening at 6pm and will go to 10pm, then on Saturday from 10am till 9pm and will finish up on Sunday from 11am till 5pm.  The show cost is $6 per person.  Children under 12 are free.  If you are looking for some more info on who is going to be there and the event layout, check out http://www.lvba.org for more information.

Also going on this Saturday is the Electronic and Universal Waste Recycling Day.  This event is located at The Allentown Fairgrounds from 9am till 1pm.  You can drop off all your unwanted electronics at this event.  There might be a small fee for certain items to be dropped off.  Part of the proceeds from this event goes to the Allen High School Band.

I know it has been a few weeks since I posted the blog, but it just wasn’t on the priority list as of late.  I hope all of you are doing well and I really and going to try to do this everyday if I can.  Since it rained here at work, there is no business so what not a better way to jump start this sucker.

First off, the blog was nominated for music blog of the year by a contest that mcall.com is running.  We will find out the answer to the question “did I win?’ tomorrow night at 7pm.  Win or lose, I appreciate the nomination and the votes.  I guess I should start promoting the blog on the radio show since it’s inception started from it.  I know that after the fact, I would like for all of us to go out and hang for a couple of beers at Greg’s West End Tavern or at Stooges.

Musically, I ran the show solo for the past two weeks.  I am a germaphobe when it comes to the little studio so I kicked Tedd to the curb two weeks ago, and last week, he could not make it.  Suzy was busy with her stuff over the last two weeks.  It will be fun to have the two of them back this Friday night.  You can check out The Matt Metal Show every Friday on 90.3FM WXLV or at http://www.wxlvradio.com.  We are on from 6 – 9pm.  With that being said, we have a new addition to Kick Ass Friday at WXLV.  Patrick Sorg, AKA “The Ox” is now on before me from 2 – 6pm.  That means that Kick Ass Friday now starts at 2pm and rolls until midnight.  10 hours of metal on a Friday sounds pretty cool to me.  I know, I know, it’s not like days of old, but hey, it works.  Don’t forget to listen to Josh from 9-10:30pm and then JJ to finish up the night from 10:30pm till midnight.

Ok, everyone!  I have stuff for tomorrow and Friday’s blog all ready for you.  There is some cool stuff happening around the valley this weekend.  I know the weather isn’t going to be 80, but enjoy the sun while it is now out.  Oh yeah, don’t forget to stop by and check out or friends at http://www.lehighvalleyweatherpatrol.com.  They will keep you updated with all your daily and weekly weather!

Just saying…..

I just wanted to let you know about some of the stuff going on for St. Patricks Day weekend so I will cover an event per day that I find interesting.  At The Gin Mill in Northampton, they are hosting a Finnigans Wake on Saturday March 17th.  They have a whole day wrapped with events around this, and here are the details:

The Gin Mill’s St. Patrick’s Day Schedule of Events:

Noon til 2 PM – St. Patio Party!!! Happy Hour – $2 Coors Light Aluminum 16 oz. Bottles and COOK OUT!!!

2 PM – FUNERAL PROCESSION LEAVES the Gin Mill and continues down Main Street
…
3:30 PM – FINNIGAN ARRIVES BACK to the Gin Mill

4:00 PM – FINNIGAN’S WAKE

6:00 PM – THE AARDVARKS

8 PM til 10 PM – $1.50 Coors Light Drafts & The COORS LIGHT GIRLS!!

**SERVING a FULL MENU from 11 AM til 1 AM – Featuring TRADITIONAL IRISH FOOD SPECIALS**Purchase a 2012 Gin Mill St Patrick’s Day Mug for $5 and get refills @ Regular Draft prices til March 31, 2012!!

Now for all you beer drinkers, you have to hone in on the buy a mug for $5 and get regular draft prices till the end of March!  Now not knowing how big the mug is, you have to think it is bigger than a pint glass!  Might be a good pick up for a wing night or two!!!!!

Well, if you head to The Gin Mill for this, have a great time!  Once again, The Gin Mill is located on Main Street in Northampton just a block past the Roxy on the right hand side.

Just saying….

Well, for those of you that know me, know I love and enjoy the younger generation being the new trailblazers in music.  What I enjoy even more, is when the younger generation actually takes the time to appreciate the music from my generation and even before me and adapt it into what they are doing today.  That brings up The School of Rock in Easton PA.  Ray and Sue Thierrin along with Albie Monterrosa have been building a great arena for our Lehigh Valley’s youth to head to learn and play music.  The School of Rock is located in Easton at 19 South Bank Street.  Since March of 2009, the school has been open and they have been focused on teaching your kids to rock…on stage and in life.  I find this last phrase to be important, for in music and as in sports that  I have coached for many years, it just isn’t about the craft at hand, but what I also find important is the lessons that are learned and how you can use them as you proceed in your life.  I have been fortunate enough to check some of there gigs out and to be able to emcee an event for them was just a great honor for me.  To see these kids up there giving it their all in front of family, friends, and strangers was a breath of fresh air.   I have also been fortunate to have this school represent themselves at my We Rock for Breast Cancer in 2011 and they also did a Maiden vs Metallica set on The Matt Metal Show.  I look forward to their representation in 2012.

The School of Rock is hosting some summer camps for kids of ages 7-21 with the first camp, the alternative/indie rock camp being for all levels of musicians, and the second camp, the songwriting and performance camp being for intermediate and above musicians.  When the songwriting and performance camp has concluded, the musicians will be playing at Plaza Tropical at Musikfest on August 7th, at 4pm.  The School of Rock also has another gig scheduled at Musikfest on August 11.  If you cannot wait to see them until August, head on down to The State Theatre in Easton to check them out opening for the Moody Blues on April 7th.  Now the neat thing here with the camp is that if you sign up in March, The School of Rock is offering a 20% discount on your camp fee.  This is a nice discount.  Definitely worth looking into if you are interested in attending.

For more information on the summer camps or attending The School of Rock, please call 610-923-7625, or you can email them at lehighvalley@schoolofrock.com.  Here is the link for the camp info:  http://myemail.constantcontact.com/Summer-Camp-Early-Enrollment-Special.html?soid=1103063442994&aid=EKCKcwlwWHs.

Take some time to check out a performance of two by this school.  I can tell you from experience, they will blow you away.

Just saying…..

Happening this coming Wed night for a one night only showing, The Civic Theatre of Allentown will be presenting Rockin Broadway and it will feature our good friend Bryan Harmony.  Bryan is now the front man for the band M80 and was formerly in Spitshine along with Jolly Roger.  Rockin Broadway is an original musical revue celebrating the influence of Rock N Roll on the The American Musical.  From “Hair” to “Rent”, Rockin Broadway will emphasize how Broadway Theatre happily captures each generations musical beat.

This event is part of a cooperative effort undertaken by the Allentown Art Museum of the Lehigh Valley, Discover Lehigh Valley, and local businesses.  This event goes hand in hand with the Allentown Art Museum’s “Who Shot Rock & Roll: A Photographic History, 1955 to Present” exhibition.

Tickets to this event are almost sold out and they are available for $20.  For tickets for this event or for more information, please call The Civic Theatre at 610-432-8943 or http://www.civictheatre.com.