Decorating Your Home for Spring

It's frustrating spending weeks or even months growing, planting, and tending your garden, only for pesky weeds to try to take over the space. You have a few options to fight and control the weeds in your flower beds.

One of these options is weed control fabric. You lay the weed control fabric across your entire flower bed, cutting holes in the fabrics for your flowers, plants, and shrubs. Weed control fabric covers and suffocates weeds that have already germinated, and it prevents existing weed seeds from sprouting. If you decide to use weed control fabric, here are a few things you should now.

1. You Must Combine Weed Control Fabric with Mulch

Once you have the weed control fabric in place, you need to cover it with mulch. You can use any type of mulch that you like, including wood, leaf, gravel, and rubber varieties. Ideally, you should cover the fabric with two or three inches of mulch.

The mulch is necessary to help hold the fabric in place and provide a layer of protection to ensure the fabric lasts the entire season. Mulch also helps the ground underneath the fabric retain moisture. Adequate moisture is necessary for the growth of your plants and flowers.

2. Weed Control Fabric Won't Prevent New Weeds from Sprouting

Some of the weeds in your flower beds are already there; the weed control fabric is designed to address these weeds. What the fabric won't help with are new weed seeds that blow into your garden from surrounding areas. These seeds will still have a chance to germinate and grow new weeds.

For the best results, you may want to combine your weed control fabric with an herbicide. As soon as you notice the weed, spray it with the herbicide. Or, you may physically remove the new weeds. If you opt to pull the weeds, make sure that you remove the root so that it doesn't grow back. 

3. You May Have Trouble Adding Nutrients to the Soil

One drawback to weed control fabric is that it prevents natural nutrients from the decaying of plants, mulch, and other organic matter from entering your soil. These nutrients help keep your soil healthy. A fix to this issue is to add supplements to your soil before you place the fabric.

Have your soil tested to see what it's lacking. Then, add amendments as needed to ensure the soil is healthy. You might use organic materials, like composted manure, to help the soil maintain a proper level of nutrients and a healthy pH level.

For more information about this and other options, work with local weed control services.