The Lemon Fool

We have a large garden and weeding can seem like painting the Forth Bridge. By the time it's finished you need to start again. My back is a problem and I'd like to cut down on the weeding.

I think the easy solution is weed control fabric covered with chippings/gravel and then plant through both. I have some experience of fabrics and all the ones I've used in the past have been less than satisfactory. The main problem has been the amount of fraying when they are cut. It is exceedingly irritating so much so that it puts me off using it.

In addition to the above I am considering switching my veg patch over to 'no dig' . I propose doing this by covering the ground with well rotted manure under a weed suppressing fabric. This needs a fabric that excludes the light to stop it keeping the weeds active.

Someting that fits the no fray requirement would be good, something that meets both would be excellent. I've lokked at Terram Weedguard, that does the first (although it is expensive) but it lets in a lot of light.

I'm hoping someone can point me in the right direction.

sg31 wrote:We have a large garden and weeding can seem like painting the Forth Bridge. By the time it's finished you need to start again. My back is a problem and I'd like to cut down on the weeding.

I think the easy solution is weed control fabric covered with chippings/gravel and then plant through both. I have some experience of fabrics and all the ones I've used in the past have been less than satisfactory. The main problem has been the amount of fraying when they are cut. It is exceedingly irritating so much so that it puts me off using it.

In addition to the above I am considering switching my veg patch over to 'no dig' . I propose doing this by covering the ground with well rotted manure under a weed suppressing fabric. This needs a fabric that excludes the light to stop it keeping the weeds active.

Someting that fits the no fray requirement would be good, something that meets both would be excellent. I've lokked at Terram Weedguard, that does the first (although it is expensive) but it lets in a lot of light.

I'm hoping someone can point me in the right direction.

Ordinary black polythene sheeting will work well and is probably a lot cheaper than special weed suppressing fabric. It won't last forever but you should get quite a few years out of it before it degrades, especially if it is mostly covered.

RC

My experience of weed control fabric has been less than favourable.

One issue, new weeds will still grow once the fabric and chippings are down. Some will be easy to pull up as they can't root through the membrane, but they still need to be dealt with.

The second issue, and I guess this depends on the type of membrane used, is that some new weeds seem to have a mass of very thin roots which can penetrate the membrane, and pulling these out always leaves some of the mass of root behind, which can then regrow.

ReformedCharacter wrote:Ordinary black polythene sheeting will work well and is probably a lot cheaper than special weed suppressing fabric. It won't last forever but you should get quite a few years out of it before it degrades, especially if it is mostly covered.

RC

I did consider that but it doesn't let water through. If it is used on plant and shrub borders wouldn't it cause problems?

It is much cheaper than what I've been looking at.

staffordian wrote:My experience of weed control fabric has been less than favourable.

One issue, new weeds will still grow once the fabric and chippings are down. Some will be easy to pull up as they can't root through the membrane, but they still need to be dealt with.

The second issue, and I guess this depends on the type of membrane used, is that some new weeds seem to have a mass of very thin roots which can penetrate the membrane, and pulling these out always leaves some of the mass of root behind, which can then regrow.

I have had the same experience with the material I used that frays. Despite the issue it will still reduce the workload considerably. A bit of weeding is ok but it is currently too much.

I've never had much success with fabric either. Weeds just seed from the top and their roots then go through the fabric into the soil and they can be a pain to remove.
My preference is for a thick mulch of bark chippings. They do keep the weeds down, and any that do appear are generally easy to remove

--kiloran

The weeds always win

todthedog wrote:The weeds always win

I use ground cover plants, such as Vinca minor (Periwinkle), because any open earth will be colonised by weeds in time. Vinca is not everyone's cup of tea, but it is a pleasant shade of green, and has little blue flowers in Spring which the bees love. Almost no weeds will put up with it, just the odd dandelion which I can deal with easily.

Nimrod103 wrote:[
I use ground cover plants, such as Vinca minor (Periwinkle), because any open earth will be colonised by weeds in time.

Little better than a weed! It's been banished from my garden (well, I banished it about 10 years ago, but it just won't believe me)

--kiloran

I don't like paying for things like this, and so have used old carpets and rugs, and cardboard, with at least some success.

kiloran wrote:

Nimrod103 wrote:[
I use ground cover plants, such as Vinca minor (Periwinkle), because any open earth will be colonised by weeds in time.

Little better than a weed! It's been banished from my garden (well, I banished it about 10 years ago, but it just won't believe me)

--kiloran

Wild strawberries arrived in our garden a few years ago, and have colonised areas around the margins of our shrubs. They have an attractive white flower, and a delicious tiny red berry - which will be left for the birds, who presumably introduced them.

kiloran wrote:I've never had much success with fabric either. Weeds just seed from the top and their roots then go through the fabric into the soil and they can be a pain to remove.
My preference is for a thick mulch of bark chippings. They do keep the weeds down, and any that do appear are generally easy to remove

This is the answer, not weed control fabric!

Fabric leads in time to a layer of organic material developing on top of the fabric, allowing things to begin growing, whose roots then adhere tightly to the fabric (or go through it) making removing them very difficult.

Whereas mulching with bark chippings, anything which does start growing is a doddle to remove because it's so loose - although very little will grow - and then you just top it up every few years or so. Plus, bark chippings look nice.

Landscapers are forever removing weed control fabric from the beds in people's gardens who've learnt the above the hard way