Mulching the garden does a lot more than just covering the soil and making it look tidy. Importantly it holds in moisture, keeps the weeds down, and helps regulate the soil temperature. If you use straw and soak it in liquid fertiliser before spreading it around, that helps speed everything up
To do that, get a wheel-barrel, put the straw into it, cover with water and liquid fertiliser, let it sit for a few hours or overnight, then apply it over your beds. Almost immediately microbes will get to work breaking it all down, helping to feed your soil. In this way the mulch also becomes part of the soil, not just a blanket sitting on top.
And now is the time to do it. There has been plenty of rain about and the soil is wet and ready to be kept that way. It’s a simple job and very rewarding, as well as making the garden look nice and tidy and ready to grow!
Enjoy
Peter