North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[Steven Covacci <filtertitle@aol.com>]

Group:
Mulch and Landscaping fabric underneath fruit/nut trees and shrubs greatly 
promotes health and vigor: I'm trying to figure out which is best - woodchip 
mulch or landscape fabric.
It keeps the ground moist - which encourages worms to cultivate the soil; and 
you can work in table scraps if mulch, and put the scraps under the fabric if 
you're willing to uncover then cover the fabric each time.
This year, I used about nearly 2" of hardwood chips and weeds appeared 
soon-enough, as this was not enough, I learned.
Should I:
A. Use as much as 4" of cedar wood chips (untreated)
or:
B. Use non-woven landscaping fabric and just cover it with a thin layer of 
cedar wood chips (untreated), partially for aesthetic purposes.
If I go with the non-woven landscaping fabric, would 2.8 oz be good-enough, 
or do I need 4 oz non-woven; or 3 oz./5 oz. woven?


If the two choices are about the same, I'd rather go with the 4" depth of 
cedar wood chips.  If the landscaping fabric is better, I would hope that 2.8 
oz non-woven would be good enough because there will be no foot-traffic.


Thanks,
Steve; NJ 6b/7a