How much mulch for a 10 x 50 bed?
Short answer
- A 10 x 50 ft bed is 500 square feet. At 3 inches deep it needs 4.63 cubic yards (125 cubic feet) of mulch.
- With 5% extra: 66 bags of 2 cu ft or 44 bags of 3 cu ft (4.86 cubic yards).
- It's typically a long property-line border.
- If you edge all four sides, that's 120 feet of edging.
Mulch for a 10 x 50 bed at 2, 3, 4 inches
Cubic yards are shown without extra so you can compare quotes. The other columns include 5% extra.
Open this bed in the mulch calculator to change the size, depth, extra or material.
How the math works
10 ft × 50 ft = 500 sq ft. At 3 inches deep that's 500 × 3 ÷ 12 = 125 cubic feet, and ÷ 27 = 4.63 cubic yards. Adding 5% gives 131.3 cubic feet to buy.
How deep should it be?
Penn State Extension recommends a 2 to 4 inch layer of mulch. Use the low end for fine shredded mulch or to top up an old layer, and keep mulch a few inches away from tree trunks and stems.