It's too windy here for any kind of loose mulch, so I'm using chicken wire over the garlic beds to keep it from blowing away. Some animal got into my first bed before I had it mulched, and dug up a couple of cloves. Maybe squirrel? So I'm wiring over the mulch tightly to keep critters out as well. I'll remove all of it when spring comes and before the garlic comes up through, but you would probably keep your soil softer by maintaining the mulch around the garlic. Here the leaves get really matted down by the snow, so in spring it's as good as a sheet of stuff. If I left it on, I would have to poke holes for the garlic to get through.
