When we recived a gift from Karla's sister of a Playset, we couldn't have been happier. However, after a few months of mowing the grass around the thing, I got tired of having to constantly trim it. The solution was to make a nice bed of kid-friendly mulch.
A landscaping company near us sells a product called Playland Wood Chips. The chips are made of a wood so soft that it only shreds, not splinters. So while it still pulls apart like regular mulch, the finer piece are too soft to become slivers. So I was sold. I ordered 2 yards of the stuff, which they delivered.
In preparation for the delivery, I first outlined the area to be the play area with landscape spray paint. Next I rented a sod-cutter from Home Depot. This made quick work of cutting out the sod.
Finally I spread landscaping fabric over the dirt and nailed it down with plastic spikes. This was to keep the weeds out. The only thing worse then grass trimming is weed picking.
When the dump truck arrived with the mulch, I had them drive right into the back yard and dump it in the bed. All I had to do was spread it out evenly.
Now Kaylee has her own park-like playground in her own back yard.
