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nafex - Re: [nafex] Weed fabric

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  • From: "Doreen Howard" <doreenh@ticon.net>
  • To: <nafex@egroups.com>
  • Subject: Re: [nafex] Weed fabric
  • Date: Tue, 4 Jul 2000 19:53:00 -0500

It has been my experience that landscape or weed fabric is a bigger problem
than the weeds. The soil underneath it dies or appears to die. The dirt
becomes hard and impacted. Existing trees and shrubs languish--they never
grow with the vigor they had before the fabric was applied. I've pulled up
more weed block in the gardens I've inherited in the last 2-1/2 years during
my journey from Zone 9b to 4b. Every time I've encountered dying or
struggling trees and shrubs and dead soil in the covered beds. Once the
fabric is pulled off and compost, plus an organic mulch is applied, the
trees and shrubs explode with growth. The soil becomes immediately
productive and whatever is planted thrives. The earthworms return, and I
can just see all the soil microbes multiplying like crazy. Weed seeds are
going to blow into any mulched surface. But, the emerging weeds are
isolated enough that they stand out to the gardener passing by--who has to
pull them up, if they are a true gardener! At least, that's what my husband
claims. He says only a true plant idiot stops to pull up a weed!!
Obviously, he is a non-gardener.
My 2 cents worth.
Doreen Howard

-----Original Message-----
From: Lon J. Rombough <lonrom@hevanet.com>
To: NAFEX List <nafex@egroups.com>
Date: Monday, July 03, 2000 11:01 PM
Subject: [nafex] Weed fabric


> One problem everyone has to deal with is keeping the soil under trees
and
>vines clean, or at least well managed so weeds don't grow up too much. One
>approach I've been trying is landscape fabric around grapes and other
>plants, for a couple of years. The first year it was great - let water
>through, kept weeds from growing. But now I don't think it's going to be
>good in the long run. First, grass seed lands on top, starts to grow and
>puts roots right through the fabric. Second, gophers and mice love to
>tunnel under it. Third, no organic matter gets to the soil through it. I
>took up a row of it and the soil had almost set like cement underneath it
>with no organic matter reaching it. Seems like organic materials for mulch
>- hay, compost, etc. - are the best way to go. They feed and improve the
>soil and keep the weeds down to a reasonable degree. That's my gripe with
>using herbicides - every vineyard I have seen with rows treated that way
>have soil like concrete under the vines. I think if the aisles weren't
>allowed to grow to grass, giving the roots an area of loose, living soil to
>go into, the vines wouldn't even survive in such soil.
>-Lon Rombough
>Grapes, unusual fruits, writing, more, at http://www.hevanet.com/lonrom
>
>------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Win A Guy ...and make him fix up your place!
>http://click.egroups.com/1/6292/0/_/423498/_/962683306/
>------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
>


------------------------------------------------------------------------
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