I can’t recommend mulching enough if you want to protect your soil and reduce weed pressure! These beds are right next to each other in the garden: same soil, planted with the same plants last year. But one I mulched with leaves and the other I left bare… and the difference is remarkable! Not only are there more weeds in the unmulched bed, but the ground there is also more compacted and will need more work to get ready for spring planting. Now, sadly, this won’t really help with invasive plants…