North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[Matt Demmon <mdemmon@gmail.com>]

This is a very good idea, but I think it it by no means new. Around
here, it's called sheet mulching, and it's most often done with
newspapers, on lawn grass, to create new beds. a section of news
paper, overlapped by a few inches, and 2-3 inches of woodchips is
enough to smother pretty much everything in the lawn in  6 weeks.
Plantains and Dandelions can pop through. The heavier the
paper/cardboard, the less perennial weeds get through. Nasty weeds
like quack grass, smooth brome, canada thistle generally are able to
grow through the cracks. I usually get cardboard from businesses on
their recycling days when the put it out by the curb. I've also seen
recently a new product in some gardening catalogs, black paper rolls.

On Tue, Feb 17, 2009 at 10:50 AM, Jim Fruth <jfruth@tds.net> wrote:
>    I sometimes wish NAFEX had a light-bulb symbol for bright, new ideas.  I
> think Diane Porter just gave us one.  She mentioned putting cardboard atop
> the soil, under the mulch.  A 6" layer of mulch will prevent annual weeds
> from growing but will do nothing to prevent perennial weeds from coming up;
> her cardboard should accomplish that task.  Is it possible that the
> perennial weeds come up, can't penetrate the cardboard and eventually
> (within a season?) die and rot?
>    I have always fallowed my soil for a season, spraying with Round Up, let
> it grow, till, spray again, repeat, etc.  Next time I need to open new
> ground, I'll use Diane's method..................now where can I get enough
> cardboard?
>
> Diane said, "We thought we'd get a truckload of composted cow manure to
> spread thickly on the ground, then cover with cardboard, mulch heavily with
> straw, and plant the raspberries in holes cut though the cardboard."
>
>
> Jim Fruth
> Brambleberry Farm
> Pequot Lakes, MN  56472
> For jams, jellies, syrups and more:
> www.jellygal.com
> 1-877-265-6856 (Toll Free)
> 1-218-831-7018 (My Cell)
>
>
>
>
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-- 
-matt demmon
photos: www.flickr.com/photos/farmerdemmon