My weeds are doing fine, thank you

[FJ and G]

Well, the rains have finally arrived in Virginia and the desireable and undesireables are all doing fine. Guess when the weather dries (in about a week), it will be time to get out the Roundup.

[tangerine-jack]

I don't have any weed problems since I switched to using cardboard covered with mulch instead of weed matting. Works like a charm and it's free.

[Anonymous]

T J
WITH all the rain we had the last few days , my mulch washed from the flower beds , and down the drive way and into the lower part of the yard , i have a lot of clean up ,as soon as the sun drys the grass out . ben[:(]

[Anonymous]

I really don't have many weeds as I have a low maintenance yard. But when i do get them i treat them and hope they go away.

Rgds ian

[tangerine-jack]

OK, one more time. Let's review-

Weed mat



Cardboard


Weed mat



Cardboard



There will be a test at the end of summer.......................

[Anonymous]

I JUST CAME IN FROM running trains for about 2 hrs.and trimed some flowers back from the tracks , it was a nice day to run trains, and trim flowers. ben[:)]

[mgilger]

[:)] I was out for 8 hours today. It was great summer conditions. Temperature was around 80 degrees, with a nice cool breeze all day. [:)] I Spent the day doing track maintenance and weed [:(] pulling. I know when I get out today, there will be more weeds to pull. That's one constant that I know will always have to contend with.

One side effect is an evening of trying to pull out all of the Cactus needles from different parts of my body. No fun...



How about someone inventing a weed killer that can be sprayed over the stuff we want to keep and have it target the weeds only. Wishful thinking, I know...

http://community.webshots.com/user/mvgilger

Mark

[Tom The Brat]

Close...

Susan used to put Lasso on the strawberries and such to keep the grass out. And 24D on the grass to keep the broadleafs out. Unfortunately, she once picked up her sprayer full of round-up when she thought she had the 24D[:o]

"Suzie, couldn't you tell by the smell? 24D and roundup smell entirely different."

She did get rid of the weeds!

[Anonymous]

I like a few weeds in the track -gives that narrow gauge feel but I dont get many . Track is screwed to bricks layed on 6 inches of concrete and rubble then ballasted with grit - I lose a bit of grit off the edges but generally it stays weed free -As for the garden it is mulched twice a year with compost to supress weed seeds . Track looks very nice btw Jack .

[tangerine-jack]

Good point, Torby, about the bottle confusion. I mark my bug killer with red duct tape and the vegitation killer with skull and crossbones, just in case I have a senior moment........

[Tom The Brat]

For the record:

24D smells like hose water.. Like when you were a kid and about to get in trouble for playing with the hose. Roundup smells spicy.

[tangerine-jack]

What if I can't smell? Duct tape has a color and a feel, easily identifiable even in the dark. The other bottle has no tape or other texture, just a skull and crossbones. I normaly won't smell toxic chemicals as a general practice until they are applied, then it is too late. For me clear and unmistakable markings work.

[ttrigg]

I'm doing the same in the GRR as the wife did in the rose beds.  2 inch layer of eucalyptus bark mulch, layer of garden fabric, 1 inch layer of eucalyptus bark mulch (I'm substituting rock and gravel for the top layer in the GRR.)

[Takasaki Matt]

Thanks tj.

Just so I do well on the test, when you lay the cardboard do you soak it in before you mulch?  Have you had to repeat the process much?  Do you make small drain holes or do you find the rain doesn't waterlog the covered bits?  In Japan we have a rainy season (just coming to an end) where it can rain continuously for a week, or just heavy hard rain for 24hrs.  It sounds like a great way to stop weeds if there are no drawbacks...

Cheers,

[tangerine-jack]

All I do is cut the grass or weeds down and put the cardboard over the area.  Then I cover it with about two inches of mulch, dry.  I then cut a hole (maybe 8-10" across) where I want to plant something.  I notice that the rain gets into the soil just fine and the cardboard/mulch retains the moisture for quite a long time without a hint of being waterlogged.  Since this is the first year I'm using the cardboard, I can't really answer the durability question, but the weed mat was done about a week before the cardboard (refere to my prior post for visual).  The bunny/tree hugger crowd claims that cardboard stays in the environment for about a gazillion years or something, so I would think it would be at least 3 or 4 years before I would have to reapply the FREE cardboard treatment.  By then I would probably want to change something anyway.  I like this method because it covers a very large area very quickly and cheaply and is quasi-biodegradable.

Caveat (as usual)- different results may be had in different areas.  Always experiment on the cheap or free plants first.  Do not try this at home, I am a trained professional in a controlled garden environment- serious injury may result from misuse of this method- no warranty expressed or implied and user assumes all risks, but I get all the credit if it works.

[Takasaki Matt]

Worth a try then.  I'll do a bit of experimenting.  Thanks TJ.

 

[John Busby]

Hi TJ

The card survives long enough to kill the weeds but it does break down so the mulch will need to be

topped up too about 4" after the card has gone.

I would be very surprised if it lasted longer than 12 months.but it works and that's what matters

plastics are what lasts for ever and a day

regards John