North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["Idell Weydemeyer" <iwgarden@earthlink.net>]

Some of the choice depends upon your climate and the weather. I have to
leave the earth around my citrus trees bare so they will soak up extra heat
in the summer and help keep the frost off in the winter (the black soil
soaks up and releases heat). Chips cool the soil so I do not use them on the
grape and fig areas-- they too need the heat for ripening. If you are in a
hot area, cooling the soil is great but I live in an area overlooking the
San Francisco Bay with cool summers.

Also, I keep some areas bare so the native bees can nest--they cannot get
through chips so well. They are important pollinator for my fruit (and the
native plants to form fruit and seeds) since they will fly in the cool and
rain below 50 degrees-- honey bees do not.

Landscape fabric makes it harder for me to pull up tough rooted weeds so I
do not use it-- and the gophers like to do runs under it.

Idell Weydemeyer
 Zone 9, coolish summers( generally in the 70s range--some 90s, some 65s),
rainy (25 inches in 4-6 months, none the rest of the year) but relatively
warm winters-- rarely below 25 degrees.

-----Original Message-----
From: nafex-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org
[mailto:nafex-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Steven Covacci
Sent: Monday, November 07, 2011 5:53 PM
To: nafex@lists.ibiblio.org
Subject: [NAFEX] Mulch/Landscapic fabric underneath fruit/nut trees and
shrubs



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
 
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