A Time to Mulch

Smith Brothers of Medina features 20 different types of premium mulch—more than anyplace else—and high volume means they sell it for less.

By: Ken McEntee
Date: 04/30/2008
The brilliant colors of Smith Brothers’ mulch just might make your flowers jealous.

“We have the most vibrant mulch you’re likely to find anywhere,” boasts Jeremy Smith, owner of Smith Brothers, a 47-year-old family business that started recycling yard waste decades before recycling was called recycling.

“We are pioneers in the mulching business,” Jeremy emphasizes. “We offer the expertise that only comes with being in the business for more than 40 years. We’re very proud of our history, but at the same time, we’re very adaptable to changing with the needs of the market.”

Smith Brothers’ mulch is the real deal. It’s made on-site from virgin wood products or fresh bark. In other words, real live wood, not drab, ground up old pallets and railroad ties like much of the mulch on the market today. The company manufactures and sells more than 250,000 yards of material a year.

“Our mulch is a natural product that will break down over time and add organic matter back into your soil,” he explains. “It’s no different from what happens in the woods. We’re bringing the woods to your home.”

Along with an assortment of dyed mulch, Smith Brothers also features naturally colored wood and bark mulch, rich compost and other landscaping materials, like gravel, sand and limestone. New this year are pine bark nuggets. The company also carries animal bedding and feed—the Smiths have been Buckeye Feed distributors since Jeremy’s grandfather ran a dairy farm on the property decades ago.

The people at Smith Brothers know how important mulch is to the look of your landscape. Face it, dull, faded mulch is about as attractive as a brown lawn. That’s why Smith Brothers color enriches its mulches in a safe, organic dye to help keep its color throughout the season. Colored mulches come in brown, red, auburn, gold and black—the most popular seller over the last couple years.

In all, Smith Brothers makes 20 different double-ground wood and bark mulch products.

“We have three types of black mulch alone,” Jeremy says. “Most people have just one. We have products to cover any budget with mulch prices that range between $19 to $40 a yard. If you want to shop for price, we’ll compete with anybody. But it’s our high-end mulches that set us apart from our competitors.”
Their premium product, for example, is triple-screened mulch, made up of bark fines.

“Consistency is the biggest things we shoot for,” he explains. “We make sure that every load is the same. Somebody who knows mulch by look, smell and texture will easily be able to tell the difference in our quality compared to some of the others out there. We want our customers to know what they’re buying. There is a lot of mulch out there. If it’s too cheap, there is usually a reason.”

Smith Brothers’ mulch is processed and stored on a concrete pad, eliminating contamination from the ground. The mulch is aged in piles that reach temperatures hot enough to kill weed seeds. The cleanliness of the operation and attentive service reflect the family pride that goes into all Smith Brothers’ products.
While contributing organic matter to the soil, mulch is normally used to enhance the appearance of a landscape.

To enhance the quality of your soil and plants, Smith Brothers offers a selection of compost products, including its own Nature’s Treasure compost, a new product made on-site from yard waste. Nature’s Treasure sells for $22.99 a yard. They also carry Sweet Peet, the popular animal manure-based composted mulch, for $33.99 a yard.

Smith Brothers’ leaf humus, another popular product that a lot of people like to use as mulch and to condition hard clay soils, is made of leaves collected from the city of Medina.

Compost returns necessary organic matter to soil, loosens clay for better root penetration, suppresses plant diseases, improves the soil’s water—and nutrient—retention capabilities, promotes higher plant yields and reduces the need for petroleum-based chemical fertilizers.

With its online product selector and mulch calculator, Smith Brothers makes it easy to choose the product that is appropriate for you, as well as how much you need. Simply visit www.smithbrosmulch.com and you can view full descriptions and photos of all of the products available.

“We want you to know what you’re buying,” Jeremy assures. “We want you to be satisfied with the product you purchase.”

A registered Class IV yard waste composting facility, Smith Brothers welcomes your yard and landscape waste. Whether you are a homeowner, a landscaping professional or a municipal government, Smith Brothers will gladly take your material at no charge. And they’ll even go out to municipal yard waste dumping areas to pick up the material.

“We just ask that there is no trash in the there,” Jeremy says.

Smith Brothers offers free delivery of five yards or more to customers within its central distribution area. For details, call 330-723-5556. Business hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and Saturdays from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Smith Brothers is located at 3087 Marks Road, in Medina.

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