The Pros and Cons of using Weed Control Fabric (Landscape Fabric)
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- Опубликовано: 10 янв 2017
- The products I use - kit.com/HortTube
This video is the Pros and Cons of using weed control fabric. Weed control fabric only temporarily reduces the number of weeds. It prevents soil improvement and keeps the soil to wet. It is useful when making decorative stone paths.
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Jim, thank you for doing this video. I moved into a 35 year old home where the previous owners put landscape fabric around EVERYTHING. The mature trees are suffering because they had 30+ years of oxygen-depriving landscape fabric covering their roots. I am now tasked with the removal of this, and it is impossible! The voles have used it as a ceiling for their homes. And, just as you said, it stopped weed control about 25 years ago. I have established beds of weeds on top of this fabric. Before purchasing, please consider Jim's list of pros & cons and think long term how bad it is for soil building. Oh, and it doesn't break down. I have 30 year old sheets of this junk that only have small holes because weed roots grew through it.
Hi Jim. I have been an avid gardener for many years without ever using landscape fabric. Recently, I had watched several videos on the use of this fabric and it seemed a real benefit to mitigating the weed problem. After watching this video, I don't think that I will be utilizing it. In he long run, it probably won't save any more time in weeding the garden; in fact, it may take more time overall. Thanks so much for giving the viewer the pros & cons of the landscaping fabric.
You are the best. No drinking coffee and eating donuts while you talk. Just the facts. Very professional . Much appreciated 👏🏾
Thank you for the video. Long Term, the fabric helps control weeds longer than anything else I used. Weeds are easier to pull out. When not used.. weeks come up withing few weeks. The point is to make them less prone to weeds..and thus require less maintenance.
It's great to use in places you never intend to plant anything. I use in some areas where I have only mulch and no plants, and use the highest grade, as I'll be 80 years old by the time it starts tearing up like the stuff your showing. Also good under pavers as I bought a house with a ton of pavers and Bermuda peeping up through every crack. Threw down a layer of the "30 year fabric" and put pavers back over. Not a single penetration in years. It does hold water and prevent airflow like you mentioned though. Cardboard is the best in a bed with plants!
Thank you for a no nonsense video! Most spend time talking about themselves, you just gave us great information from your personal experiences.
I totally agree with your comments.
I used fabric when I converted lawn to garden bed. Worked great for several years until crab grass started seeding itself and it grew down through the fabric. I ended up just breaking the weeds at the bottom of the stems, leaving the root intact. Over next several years had to gradually rip up all the fabric. Never again.
Oh my goodness! I'm a first-time homeowner on half an acre and you just saved me a ton of money I was about to drop for the entire perimeter. And added bonus, now I know what to do with all my Amazon boxes! Win-Win! :)
As a new gardener, I used the fabric in a rose garden. I was working full time and didn't weed as often as I should have. I spent the next few years getting rid of it and battling rue that had seeded around and through it. Cardboard and or newspapers are a much better alternative and make the worms happy.
Thanks Jim for your great videos
Thanks for the video. After nearly 60 years of living, I have found the American dream of a house with a white picket fence and nice yard has ultimately turned out to be a pain in the ass. The original home cost is one thing, but cost (in money and time) of its maintenance and upkeep is whole other horse. Weeds in flower beds is just one of the ongoing pains. For low-maintenance reasons, 10 years ago I put down weed block fabric in my flower beds with 3" of gravel on top. Starting at about year one I still had weeds around the parameter edges. At about year two, I began to get weeds growing in the gravel. By year three, a few tough weeds were growing up through the fabric and gravel. And by year four, the fabric was literally deteriorating in the Florida heat and weeds were growing at-will. I found that if I spot sprayed weed killer the chemicals leeched over and killed bushes and flowers; so I have been stuck with either hand pulling the weeds or having to remove all the rocks and replace the weed fabric to get another few years of low-weed-deterence... because I tell you there is no such thing as completely weed free. In another section of flowerbeds I tried the paper/cardboard and even used bed sheets which neither method was much better. Because of this weeds-in-the-flowerbed dilemma, I make it a point to look at what some other home owners are doing. The only weed-free solution that I see are homes were the owners decided to just forget any and all bushes/shrubs/flowers. Yes, I know, a plant-less home looks a bit drab in decor but they also still look neat and a lot more maintenance free. I assume those owners put down plastic or use a liberal amount of herbicides (which I'm not crazy about). So at my age the days of crawling around my flowerbeds in the heat and bugs pulling weeds is much less attractive. And I am sick of the idea of having to once again rip out my flowerbeds and throw more money down on the ground to fight the weeds. Lastly, I am still trying to come to grips with the idea of a home with no flowers or bushes... after all that is a part of the American dream. The only other solution I can conceive is using large clay pots... VERY COSTLY.
It's a constant battle for me too,another gardener Laura said she doesn't use it,because she likes to dig and it's always in the way, find that to be true also
I have found the same. So now I have slot of landscape fabric areas with pine bark mulch with sparse landscaping and some decorative pots that way it is easy to spray the weed control. Yes over time weeds will grow in but no where near the rate with bare soil. And the mulch has to be thick. My neighbor has alot of oak trees with no weeds in his yard. They were taking and bagging and I used the oak leaves as mulch free and natural. My rose bush loved it and really kept the weeds at bay even without cloth because it was so thick. Maybe lasts a season.
Minimalism , as a current trend, would fit well with your conclusion and just might be the way to go!
Jim whenever I’m searching for information about a particular plant or anything to do with landscaping I always first search through to see if you have a video posted on the topic. Your videos are very informative. And this one on landscaping fabric is no different. Thank you for validating something that I had heard from other people throughout the years. Which is that newspapers and cardboard are great Weed barriers. In fact I just returned a roll of landscape fabric to Home Depot yesterday. Thank you once again.
Great video! I’m right now paying a landscaper to remove ALL that fabric I put down a year ago for all they”cons” you note. I noticed the nasty mildew stench as well and LOTS of weeds
I used weed barrier with pine needle mulch for several years. after 2 or 3 years my garden area started getting saturated with swarms of mosquitos. It became so bad my wife wouldn't venture out into the garden from June to September. One day I accidentally kicked up some mulch and a swarm of mostquitos emerged. I then started checking other areas of the garden and had the same experience, that was mosquitos. After years of adding the pine straw mulch the earliest layers had become a soggy mess of wetness gooey stinking stuff and created a place for the pests to lay their 'demon' eggs. Long story made shorter...after removing all the barriers and laying new mulch my mosquito problem went away. But now I am again cursed with weeds.
I enjoyed reading this story, thank for sharing. Congratulations on the mosquitoes being gone and welcome back to the weed-club.
Very precise and accurate analysis of this product! I couldn't agree more! Thanks
Thank you! You just saved me the time of laying it down in a flower bed.
I appreciate your simple, straightforward approach to your videos.
Very interesting. Your pros and cons video is an eye opener. Thank you!
Thank you for the information! I appreciate that you just give out the pros and cons and let the watcher make the final decision. It's winter right now, but I'm excited to refresh the flower beds at my new house in the springtime! :)
Love this guy! Great information and excellent teacher.
Thank you, Jim, for clear and concise information about weed fabric. I was planning to do an area of my front yard with the stuff but may just go for cardboard now. Also, thank you so much for not shouting! Some of the speakers on these things always yell!
Thank you for saving me from using landscape fabric in my organic vegetable garden! I appreciate it! Love from Southern California!
Great quick video, I think the best part was the very end talking about using newspaper. Thanks for that idea!!!
Thank Jim for providing your experience knowledge on landscape fabric.
Thank you for the pro's and con's. I was about to lay down my first landscape fabric and have now decided to forgo it . Newspaper and cocoa mulch will do just fine.
Glad you made this, I was about to use some in my strawberry patch thinking it'd save me work. Never considered the long term effects. Thank You!
That was very useful, thank you. I recently bought land and now I'm learning about how to take care of it.
I use weed barrier religiously. I use two layers where weeds are particularly troublesome. I cut out portions through the fabric to plant my seedlings. I also use cardboard and burlap as weed barriers, along with mulch. I think the method you choose depends on what you are doing with your beds, and how you maintain them under the barrier. I always dig in well-rotted compost from the pile and other amendments before applying my barrier.
Thanks Jim - a very helpful and clear video. Warm greetings from Scotland.
Newspaper and cardboard for the win!
My wife and I just decided to put down fabric to help curb our weeding issues. I’m glad I saw your vid , you saved us some time and money! Great vid..
Thank you for the video. I have been working landscaping for 4 years and I notice that beds with weed barrier fabric sometimes look worse because people expect far less maintenance. I find mulch alone and maintenance works better, for the price, than adding anything but old newspapers and cardboard.
This is a GREAT video. I bought a large roll of landscape fabric from a big box store and was looking on RUclips for how to use it. I came across this video and my decision is made! I already was wondering whether or not I should forego using it. I have had great success with cardboard and leaf mulch and will continue with that practice. Thank you so much!
Jim, this is such an informative, well-reasoned video. Thank you sir!
Getting ready to do my flower bed and was debating on whether to use fabric or not. Your video helped me decide not too. Thank you!
Excellent, excellent video. I think I'm going to have to watch it again to make sure I understood everything you said, especially about soil improvement. so many of my friends and neighbor's are using landscape fabric. I just use free woodchips, and they are improving my sandy soil and keeping my ground cool when the temperature is in the 90's. Thank you, I hope more people watch this video.
Cardboard! Brilliant! Thanks Jim.
Thank you so much. You just saved me the trouble of laying this stuff down, and extra cost. I now fully agree, natural is the way to go! Take care.
Well, while I agree, I don't think the glue in cardboard is actually natural. I like to use mulch but it is hard to find untreated(color wise anyway) Mulch. Our town grinds up branches and leaves and we can take as much as we want so I try to stay with it. I di use the fabric in some spots and this video is very accurate as far as I can tell. Thanks for the video,
Well said. I have been telling people this for years here in St. Petersburg Florida. Thanks for making the video.
Excellent! Answered all my questions and then some. Thank you.
Wow! I never knew! If it weren't for you, I will never know this. Thank so, so, much!
Thanks for the video. Was in the process of making a purchase decision and your video helped me weigh the alternatives. Will go the cardboard, newspaper route first and evaluate it effectiveness.
Thank You for this information. I’m starting a perennial garden this year. So glad I saw this. 😀
Thank you! I moved into a home that has a weed barrier in the backyard. After watching your video, I've decided to pull it out this weekend.
Very interesting points. Many I never would of thought of. Thank you.
Well, I have many years experience with all three methods and there are advantages to each and all three have a benefit in certain circumstances. Very easy to move plants around when there is no weed barrier and with that comes pulling more weeds that may or may not be more difficult to remove. Cardboard is a good short term option, because it breaks down as well as reduces the difficulty of pulling weeds and also germinating weed seeds. I have tried several landscape fabrics and prefer a very thick, dense fabric that does not allow weeds to grow through it. It’s easy to cut through and make small or large holes if you decide you want to move things around. When the fabric is in a sunny area I’ve never experienced a nasty smell on the ground associated with removing the black fabric. So, most of my areas in full sun have heavy duty landscape fabric and shade areas do not, as I prefer to plant moss or ground covers. I mulch most everything with pine bark nuggets, because I like the look and it’s easy on the hands. Cypress mulch tends to contain lots of stinkhorn mushroom spores (the stench from these mushrooms is horrific and ruins the garden experience until they are removed) in my southern location, and many more slivers. Cypress mulch also explodes with spores that drop on and attach to vinyl siding and vehicles, leaving tiny black specs on everything that are extremely difficult to remove. I have used pine straw extensively as well, and the downside for me was walking on it and how slippery it can become, especially on a slope. I hope that helps. Happy gardening!
Surprisingly excellent video.
Very helpful information! I hadn't considered how it might affect soil quality. Thank you!
Oh my, good thing I haven't laid down my mulch yet. I have dug in a new garden bed and just put this in place. I didn't even think of the negative effects for the long term! The cardboard and newspaper is a great tip! I get lots of flyers and city-paid newspapers in our small town.
Wow! I feel like I dodged a bullet, seeing your video! We just laid landscape fabric, in preparation for installation of a rock/succulent garden, over the weekend! It's gonna be torn out, and replaced with cardboard. Thank you so much!
I have been weeding at a new property I bought last fall I did not have time to read before first Frost but in a Evergreen patch I reached a plastic barrier underneath some very tough rooted Japanese creeper. I have been pulling up the weed block as it is shot full of holes but also because the creeper vine is everywhere. Should I put down a layer of cardboard or put gravel under the topiary evergreens?
This was an eye opener for me as I was just about to buy a weed barrier for a landscape job at my house. Your videos are informative and very well done. I learn something from every one that I have watched.
+Thomas :: me too; I am looking into how to use the material and find out that maybe I shouldn't!
You have to use a very good woven barrier not the cheap junk in the stores like he is showing here. Go to a landscape supplier and buy from there not Lowes or menards there is definitely a difference in the quality.
@@jhomrich89
Ditto! Rethinking a future project.
@@jhomrich89 the quality of the material is not the problem, it’s the effect it has on the soil. I installed a 30 year protection fabric and after a year or two my trees and plants looked unhealthy. When I pulled the fabric off the soil didn’t look right but more like a concentration of clay without organic matter. Now I’m back to square one without any fabric, all that money and work for nothing.
Thank you so much for that explanation and especially for offering an alternative! I don't know anything about gardening really and the previous tenants here left the yard looking like a jungle. After we cleared away most of the weeds and debris we realized that there was still everything and the devil in the soil so I was gonna use that fabric to create a fresher and cleaner look but I'm definitely going with the newspaper option now! =)
I enjoyed Jim’s “pros and cons” presentation. I have used weed control carpets for years and have found it to be as advertised: it controls weeds. I disagree about the expense. I guess I’ve been using really inexpensive fabric because compared to the outrageous prices one sometimes pays for individual annuals I think the cost of the fabric is minimal. He also spoke of actually pulling weeds when and if they do come up and I don’t think he explained how easy weeds do come up.
But again, I really enjoyed Jim’s presentation and will be watching for more landscaping tips!
Love it! Thanks! I'm going for the cardboard!
I agree with all the cons you mentioned for using fabric. I ripped out the fabric that covered all the beds in front of my house. The fabric was covered with rock mulch which was eliminated as well. The condition of the ground beneath the fabric had the look of a slick concrete floor.
Very helpful and informative. Glad I saw it before I put down the landscape fabric. it's going back to Lowes. Thank you.
Thank you for sharing! Extremely helpful 🙏☺️
Great video. Direct to the point. Thank you. Please do more like this.
I'll be using newspaper and cardboard when I lay down marble stones in the fall. I planted lavender plants and in the fall I'll plant bulbs and leave a gap for each flower for when they emerge in the spring. I think your advice is brilliant. Newspapers! Just brilliant!
My mom uses weedblock in her vegetable garden every year but she tears it up each winter and lays new fabric down in the spring after spreading compost. She has wondeful soil but that's because she let's it breath for 5 or 6 months.
Nobody ever talked about pros & cons like this.
Thank you so much. You are awesome and the way you presented this tells me that you are a very trustworthy guy.
God bless you .
Namaskaram
Would love to be able to have some new plants to plant this fall. You have inspired me to with what you are doing at your new house. Can’t wait to see more progress in your front yard!
I've also found, when removing fabric on my job, that the varmints just love tunneling under it, and the ground is inundated with tunnels. They will do that to the extent that when you walk over it, you actually sink in where the tunnels are. People also use very heavy fabric that water has a really difficult time penetrating, except in the planting hole. I actually always make new beds with the newspaper method, right over sod, with a layer of mulch, or better yet, compost to weigh down the paper, then cut holes to plant through. All of that good stuff breaks down and feeds the plants, no back-breaking double digging, and nothing goes to waste! I use several layers of dampened paper, and it smothers the grass and weeds and takes quite some time to break down, while adding organic material to the soil.
I've used a high-end weed barrier and it is great --- 5 years and still happy!
Your results may vary - the key is to use very strong (yet porous) fabric - the kind that must be cut with a virgin exacto blade. We used it for succulent plant landscaping in our front and back yards with different sizes of river rocks on top of the fabric. The rocks we get for 'free' in the local mountains. Nice to not have to pick weeds or mow a lawn - just trim the succulents when they grow too much, plant them in little pots and replant them later, or use them indoors, give to friends, or sell. Plus people walking by comment on or take photos of our front yard. And even if the fabric wears away in 5-10 more years, all I have to do is move rocks to the side and lay down more fabric.
Great info. Will definitely give me info for decision to use or not to use, or use temporarily. Thanks!
Really glad I watched this video! Never liked weed barrier bc I love to add compost to my soil but the weeds are killing me! I caved & bought some weed barrier but I think I’m gonna pass after watching this video. I’d rather pull weeds than deal w/the cons of the fabric. Thanks for the honesty & straightforwardness
Thank you so much! I’m new to gardening and the previous home owner left a role of it, I think you just saved me a lot of work and frustration!
Glad to help. Thanks for watching
HortTube with Jim Putnam , years ago we bought a whole bunch so I was thinking of using it up anyhow. Might put paper under and then pull it up after 5 or six months as that is the growing season. But still no one is showing ha to hill potatoes with it. Seems people are just showing how to put it in but haven't used it for years. So not so helpful to show that it would be a good thing.
The fabric I bought from Homer's allowed weeds through it in 2 weeks. I wish I had seen your video before and saved the money and TIME!
Experience counts. Thanks!
Thank you so much! I’ve tried this stuff and didn’t know what I didn’t like about it now I know!!!
So let me get this straight. You bought a product, tried it out, didn't like it but did not know what you didn't like about it? It took someone else explaining what they don't like about something for you to agree? You are a sheep through and through.
Thanks for the info. Glad I watched this video!!!
Everything you’ve said is so true I learned most the hard way over time. I don’t use it anymore it’s not beneficial for my needs and it’s tough to remove if root bound. It’s good for erosion control on a slope when trying to get a stand of ground cover. 👍
Excellent analysis. Thank you
Very informative, and I've changed my mind about using it except in square foot gardening raised beds.
Thanks for watching and commenting.
Thanks Jim. Hope you are well.
I’d love to see you tackle a no dig bed. I just tried it for the first time. I used cardboard with a lot of compost and garden soil dumped on top to cover the grass where I wanted the new bed. I really didn’t like the work or the loss of good soil in digging out a new bed last fall. Seems to be working so far.
This info is gold. Thank you.
Oh thank you! Really good information and simple to understand. Makes a lot of sense. 😁
We use weed barrier and quarter inch hardware cloth under our raised beds mostly to keep burrowing critters out. Other then that I find no use for it. We had a stacked potato patch once. When we went to harvest it, all six feet tall of it, went all the way down through the layers and while we had beautiful healthy potato vines there wasn't one potato. There was a hole in the ground beneath it though. We also had perfect looking hollowed out watermelon too lol. Being new to gardening in the south I absolutely appreciate your videos, Jim. I know how to garden in high deserts. This is all new to me. Fun learning.
My use for that stuff is to use a double layer and sew it into cloth pots... I make tree liner tall pots and pack them into plastic crates to keep them straight
Thank you! Very informative.
That was a big help. Convinced me to not lay the fabric as my wife wants to put down flowers and do some landscaping so we want lots of water and oxygen into the flower bed. Thanks!
Thanks for this and great channel. Hi from Australia
Very helpful, thank you for sharing..
Why this expert doesn’t have 500 k subscribers is a mystery! Definitely a go to resource. I was struggling with should I remove this fabric or not?... I made my decision based on this video information. Thanks once again.
Thanks for this video. I was just about to go buy that stuff.
Thanks for the video AND for the info on using newspaper and cardboard. I was actually looking for info that would clarify whether my plan to use cardboard and newspaper was a good idea or if I should purchase the fabric. Now I can proceed with my original plan. Thanks.
Great Information! Thanks
Really helpful, Jim. Thank you! I think I may go the newspaper + mulch route!
Thanks for reminding me about the cardboard trick.
very informative video, thank you sir
excellent video, nutshell of what i need to know about weed fabric!
Yes...me too. That stuff grew through thick newspaper, magazines and cardboard.
Super helpful video! Thank you!!!
Very informative video. I finally gave up on using landscape fabric for those same reasons. My last project I even used three layers of fabric after I used vegetation killer on the soil…because I was just laying rock over the fabric…no plants. Three inches of rock to be exact…and the weeds and even crabgrass started to grow up through the three layers of fabric just after two to four months. The vegetation killer was supposed to last a year…but even that wasn’t true. As you said some of the weeds pulled out easy…but many were coming up through the fabric and left huge holes in the fabric after pulling them. Even fire ants built large mounds from under the fabric to over the fabric….and the amount of German cockroach babies living and thriving just under the fabric was horrible….it became a breeding ground….safe from birds. So I had to pull everything up and make an area out of concrete instead. I thought the fabric would make for easy to no maintenance but it only made things harder….and it was the more expensive kind of fabric that’s supposed to be better. I wish I would have watched this video first.
I really like the idea of using newspaper instead. I always have plenty of that every week.
Good info. Some new insight for sure👍
Great info!
Thanks.
I'm redoing irrigation boxes on a commercial site (with no gravel except a 1 inch "sprinkling" under the valves. Roots from bushes and trees penetrated the fabric making excavation of the boxes extremely difficult - 90%+ of soil around the boxes needed to be removed before the boxes could be pried out of the ground. I was planning to put new fabric down then lay gravel on top and around the irrigation valve boxes so the gravel can easily be removed in the future if pipes need to be repaired or added on to. Glad gravel / soil separation is a good use of it. Thanks.
I'm glad I found this video. I am NOT good at gardening or growing things, but I bought some hostas and turned the soil. Also bought some weed cloth. I think I will take it back to Walmart. IF my hostas live....I hope....I'll try my best to stay on top of the weeds! Thanks for this :)
Regina B TAKE.IT.BACK!! I bought a home with a little garden bed in front, went in to garden and ran into every single issue that he addressed in the video! My husband and I spent many hours ripping it out..including the grass/weeds that had grown into the fabric and soil underneath. All mulch layered on top had to be carted away. The previous owner only had the cloth on for a year. Total waste of everyone's time and money!
Years ago I used the landscape fabric under the plants and around my foundations where I put gravel. It was all good for a little bit and then I actually removed it from my plants cause I couldn’t pull the whole weed up. Everything you are saying is correct. I wished I had not done that because I hurt my back. This week I am removing the fabric from underneath my gravel because not only the weeds are everywhere but the soil underneath is always wet and it starting to smell. I live in Raleigh NC and the clay soil is terrible. My backyard is creating a lot of stress for me. Really enjoy your videos. New subscriber
Time to amend that clay soil! It's hard work so maybe have a landscaper do that for you or ask over friends or family to help. I have clay soil up here in PA. I've amended where I planted lavender (likes dry sandy rocky soil) and wow was it hard work! I dug 12-18 inches down and 18 inches around for 6 lavender plants and mixed compost, sand and rocks in. I have more to do in the fall when planting bulbs. I'll be laying down newspaper and cardboard before spreading marble stones instead of weed fabric, leaving appropriate sized gaps for the flowers to sprout next spring.
Thank you for making a non biased video. I’m still on the fence as to what I should do for a small section 3x3 where rock is going to be installed.
Great stuff, Glad you mentioned this, I planned to do this weekend, I changed my mind to paper or biodegradable materials