Get free mulch from PEC!
Learn how two members used theirs
UPDATE: Due to the overwhelming popularity of this program, requests for mulch have resulted in a long waiting list. Unfortunately, PEC is currently unable to receive new requests for free mulch deliveries. Members who are already on the list may still receive deliveries, however, it remains up to the contractor to decide when, where, and if they will drop off mulch.
Here at PEC, we don’t wait until the holidays come around — we give back to our community year-round. This year, we will be featuring the many ways we make the Hill Country an even better place to live. Because we don’t just power your community; we empower it, too!
Since PEC member Steve Huskey was just four years old, he’s been interested in plants. By his early teens, he was growing fresh okra and beans all by himself.
Today, with 13 gardens dotting his property in Buda, his thumb is greener than ever. From his beds of Chile pequin to his native Texas plants, the fruits of his labor benefitted from the free, raw mulch PEC delivered to his front lawn shortly after Hurricane Harvey this past fall.
“The trees that fell down from those storms were repurposed for mulch, and then four loads of it was dropped off in my yard,” Huskey said. “It was a fairly easy process, and what’s great about this mulch is it cools the ground and the plants, and ultimately, it seals in moisture for the soil. I’m already ready to get another load of [mulch]. It’s great.”
Throughout the year, we mulch tree branches trimmed during our regular vegetation maintenance efforts, and we also accept natural, bare Christmas trees from the community just after the holidays each year. Members can request mulch from our vegetation team any time and have it delivered right to their doorstep.
Ours doesn’t resemble the processed mulch found at many garden centers, however. It consists of wood chips, not finely grated particles. That’s the very reason former PEC member Sharon Pike loved it so much.
“Personally, I like the look of the raw mulch,” she said. “It has a rustic look to it; it’s not manicured. I used it for my gardening a lot, and the two or three loads of it I got from PEC was awesome.”
There’s no denying it: Both Huskey and Pike agree, it’s the best because it’s free.
“You can’t buy this kind of mulch anywhere, so why not get it for free and feel good about receiving it, too, because it’s recycled?” Pike said. “I always appreciated this program at PEC.”