Has anyone tried that weed-proof mulch? I noticed it in

[babylonsister]

Home Depot. It's Vigoro brand, claims it kills weeds up for 4 months. It's more expensive, but maybe since it prevents weeds, you wouldn't have to use as much. Thoughts?

[BOSSHOG]

1. I can't imagine it being worth the cost

The gardening column guy in the local paper says the best way to get rid of weeds is to pull em. We have used some of that ground cover stuff under the mulch, water goes through it, you can plant through it and its supposed to cut down on weeds. It works fairly well. Actually the four month caveat peaked my interest. Thats not a very long weed preventive time frame for our area; and I wouldn't want to replace it after that time. The weeds will come back, guaranteed.

If I may be so bold to ask of you, don't buy Cypress Mulch, for the sake of the Louisiana Gulf Coast.

[babylonsister]

2. This from the man who said his property was a mess?

;-)

I have been pulling weeds for a week; I had a horrendous amount left from last summer, and I swear the seeds came in on the mulch I bought, as I weed every year prior to planting. Last year was noticeably worse. And you KNOW you don't want to be pulling weeds in July or August in this climate. I figured 4 months was better than nothing; maybe weeds wouldn't get going until after the 4-month time frame. :shrug: I googled, but there's next to nothing about this stuff there.

What is this ground cover stuff of which you speak? Do you have to cut holes in it for existing plants? And what do you do about trees? Sounds like a pain to put down. Also, would bulbs break through it when they reach for the sun?

I promise I won't buy cypress mulch, cross my heart!

[BOSSHOG]

3. Our front yard is in pretty good shape

but I'm ashamed of my lack of effort on the southside of the house (about a half acre.) "I'll get to it" (the paralysis analysis of having way too much time on one's hands.) We put a ton of mulch out each year, its great for the plants and shrubs and my beautiful crepe myrtles along the drive. We have antique mulch around the camellias, its been there for years buried by a yearly addition. I'm a cheapskate, I'm getting pine bark mulch.

Here's the website for the product I got last year at Home Depot (landscape fabric.)

http://www.dalenproducts.com/intro.html

I hope you find whatever you need. If you use the weed killing mulch give us a review this summer. Happy Gardening.

[babylonsister]

4. Pine bark mulch: I was told years ago it attracted termites so

haven't used it since. Is that a bunch of HOGwash?:evilgrin:

[BOSSHOG]

5. No, that's true

you don't want to put it around the foundation of your house. We use it on plants away from any structures. It also may attract fire ants which dine on termites, so its that old nature cycle going round and round.

[mitchtv]

6. I used newspaper covered with straw

cheap and effective. A couple of bales of hay , and you're in business.

[sazemisery]

7. Funny straw bale story

When my neighbors moved in (I live in rural NE Oklahoma) they purchased a mobile home (not modular - it had wheels). It was late August and they did not get around to installing the skirting before winter. To help insulate the underside they piled straw bales around the entire perimeter of the house. It worked great, probably better than the skirting. Spring came and obviously the bales were from a late cutting cause they had the prettiest oat grass hedge around their house I have ever seen!

[susanna]

8. That story reminds me off a book I read recently...

"The Country Kitchen" by Della Lutes. She comes from my part of the world (Michigan). She was a farmer's daughter growing up in the late 1800s near Jackson, Michigan. She mentioned that they piled hay up around the foundation of the home before serious winter set in; it kept everything warm. I wonder if she noticed the oat grass hedge in the spring? She never mentioned that. :-)

[NMDemDist2]

9. dang, i gotta try that!

we have a skirt, but anything to help insulate would be great. maybe just the sides where the wind blows in would help

also, Ii'm thinking under the skirt might be a good place to use as a root cellar in the fall, whadda ya think?

[babylonsister]

10. I've been meaning to get back here to give my results on the

weed-proof mulch. DON'T GO THERE! It's more expensive and I did not notice one iota of difference; if anything, I had more weeds last summer. :grr: So this year I'm going to try the chunky mulch; see if I have any luck with that.

[BOSSHOG]

11. Our gardner guy on the radio

says someone is always trying to sell us something. Thanks for the info. We did a little mulch touching up out back. We placed newspaper on the surface, about three pages thick, dampened the paper and then put a pretty heavy dose of mulch on top of that. We'll never get rid of all weeds Sis, so just enjoy what ya got. Hope ya have a great spring garden. I haven't planted any veggies yet cause I got wiped out last year by a combination of my impatience and a late frost so I'm just biding my time till I'm about 99% sure there will not be another frost.

[Imalittleteapot]

12. Use organic fertilizer & compost. Weeds love unhealthy soil.

I use cedar mulch because I heard that it may discourage mosquitoes (???). Not always an option, but don't hoe or till if possible because it brings the weed seeds to the surface. If you must hoe or till, do it early and after wards cover with newspaper and hay or something, water and let it bake in the sun. Remove when you are ready to plant. You can always burn the weeds with a propane torch - be sure to have a hose nearby. I have very few weeds to pull but always have many pecan, oak and ash seedlings - a real pain.

[plantwomyn]

13. Vigoro can not be used around veggies.

I wouldn't use it around fruit trees either.
If you want to go cheaper use granulated Treflan and then mulch on top. As long as you don't dig in the bed it lasts all year. But Treflan should not be used with veggies either.
Weed barrier covered with stone is the most permanent and works great. Pine needles, ground leaves and grass clippings are a cheap and nourish the soil. I use grass clippings and my tree guy dumps wood chips for me every year. I use the wood chips fresh to burn out weeds and grass to start new beds and seasoned chips for mulch. Free or at the most $18 a cu. yard, that's about 25 bags of mulch worth. So check with your local tree guy.

[hippywife]

14. I would definitely be worried

that it had been treated with something I don't want in my food crops. We put down weed barrier and then covered it with cedar mulch around the planter boxes. Smells good and cedar is supposed to discourage insects.