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Garden Gate:  garden question  |
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sewbug
True Blue Farmgirl
61 Posts
kim
Charlton
ma
USA
61 Posts |
 Posted - May 22 2010 : 07:20:31 AM
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Hi all. Wondering what you all use in your gardens to prevent weeds in the paths. I have been putting grass clippings. Not sure if it is good. How about leaves?
Also, I just planted a grapevine. This will be a new adventure! :)
Happy Gardening! Kim
farmgirl sister #105 |
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gramadinah
True Blue Farmgirl
3557 Posts
Diana
Orofino
ID
USA
3557 Posts |
Posted - May 22 2010 : 07:31:39 AM
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I put a layer of newspaper and then the grass in the vegetable beds on the paths I have used cardboard with wood chips. I also have old carpet for the paths it seems to make everything happy.
Diana
Farmgirl Sister #273 |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - May 22 2010 : 07:37:16 AM
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I am going out there in a few and start putting down all the feed sacks and dog and cat food bags and newspapers I have been saving down the rows. Leaves are great to use as mulch. Also old hay at least a few years old.
I have 4 grape vines I have got to get planted. And I just bought 2 thornless blackberry plants. The guy told me to mulch at least 6" with ground oak leaves. I have a huge oak tree out back but that's also where all my goaties are. I may have to go on an oak leaf search.
Also wanted to say grass clippings are great to use as mulch. They do heat up though so don't put too close to the stalks of plants.
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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sherrye
True Blue Farmgirl
3775 Posts
sherry
bend in the high desert
oregon
USA
3775 Posts |
Posted - May 22 2010 : 08:34:52 AM
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howdy farm girls, i too use all the above methods. my favorite is clean straw. microbes in the soil LOVE straw. it can be moldy some when put down. as in wet bales. i use newspaper, but only the black and white. no color ads. etc. i have used carpet. i ONLY use it in perenial borders or paths. never on food. carpet is one of the major causes of many cancers and other nerve problems. they are made with untested chemicals. then they are sprayed with a round up and a pesticide on fibers. this is to ensure clean safe shipping and storing of said carpet. these out gas in the air we breath and the soil. into your plants. when i learned this i stopped using carpet. it is a cheap way to keep weeds out. cheap is not always best. the carpet chemicals kill the good stuff worms and other micro organisms love and need to eat to live. my goal in gardening and life is to never do harm. i strive for live soil. this is just one farm girls opinion. happy days sherrye
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farmgirl #1014
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homsteddinmom
True Blue Farmgirl
441 Posts
Brandee
bullard
tx
USA
441 Posts |
Posted - May 22 2010 : 08:47:27 AM
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I buy mulch from the same place i buy my organic compost. I can get a truck load(1 cubic yard) for $12 dollars. but of course i dont have a standard garden with hills, mine are all raised beds and tubs all filled with organic compost that has been hot enough to kill all seeds so no weeds! Good luck with the grapes. I have 12 i need to plant. I already have 2 planted. When i bought these they were kinda crappy looking so i replanted them into bigger pots to make sure they were gonna live before i went to the trouble of planting them. I also planted 10 blue berry bushes~
Homesteading Mom in East Texas. Raising chickens, Rabbits and goats here on my farm! |
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sewbug
True Blue Farmgirl
61 Posts
kim
Charlton
ma
USA
61 Posts |
Posted - May 22 2010 : 09:26:31 AM
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I also have 12 blueberry bushes that are 4 yrs. old. Not a huge abundance of berries yet. I do put oak leaves around the base.
 Do I need a purgula for grapes?
farmgirl sister #105 |
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natesgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
1735 Posts
angela
martinsville
indiana
USA
1735 Posts |
Posted - May 22 2010 : 2:36:14 PM
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I use grass clipping, leaves, sawdust and newspaper. Whatever I can find basically.
Farmgirl Sister #1438
God - Gardening - Family - Is anything else important? |
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Bart
True Blue Farmgirl
115 Posts
115 Posts |
Posted - May 23 2010 : 08:30:19 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by sewbug
I also have 12 blueberry bushes that are 4 yrs. old. Not a huge abundance of berries yet. I do put oak leaves around the base.
Do I need a purgula for grapes?
farmgirl sister #105
Blueberries love coffee grounds. If you don't drink coffee you can usually get grounds from any coffee shop or restaurant. They want that soil to be full of acid and the grounds really do that.
Grapes grow nicely on a fence or even just trained around willow or other branches. If you tie them up that's the way they'll grow. |
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willowtreecreek
True Blue Farmgirl
4813 Posts
Julie
Russell
AR
USA
4813 Posts |
Posted - May 23 2010 : 09:46:54 AM
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I use weed fabric and cover it with hay. I keep adding layers as the season goes on.
Farmgirl Sister #17
Blog
www.eggsandherbs.com
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Gloria Bonde
True Blue Farmgirl
103 Posts
Gloria
Hot Springs
SD
USA
103 Posts |
Posted - May 23 2010 : 8:05:03 PM
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I use straw in the veggie beds. In my garden I have made pathways out of the local pink limestone. I grow ground hugging thymes and other low growing plants as living groundcovers and inbetween the rocks. I have lots of pics on my blog: www.DakotaGarden.com
www.DakotaGarden.com |
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TJinMT
True Blue Farmgirl
211 Posts
TJ
Billings
MT
USA
211 Posts |
Posted - May 28 2010 : 3:25:57 PM
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Well fiddle about the carpet! We use it at our local Community Garden for pathways... and when we joined this Spring, I was appalled to see how FEW earthworms we have! I mean, I'm used to GOBS and GOBS of them in my home gardens. I had assumed that the use of tillers had reduced the CG's worm population (as I don't use a tiller at home) - otherwise our CG is organic. We use old carpet remnants for pathways with woodchips on top. I've started heavily trench composting to try to draw in the worms. Wow. Very interesting, Sherrye!!!
quote:
Originally posted by sherrye
howdy farm girls, i too use all the above methods. my favorite is clean straw. microbes in the soil LOVE straw. it can be moldy some when put down. as in wet bales. i use newspaper, but only the black and white. no color ads. etc. i have used carpet. i ONLY use it in perenial borders or paths. never on food. carpet is one of the major causes of many cancers and other nerve problems. they are made with untested chemicals. then they are sprayed with a round up and a pesticide on fibers. this is to ensure clean safe shipping and storing of said carpet. these out gas in the air we breath and the soil. into your plants. when i learned this i stopped using carpet. it is a cheap way to keep weeds out. cheap is not always best. the carpet chemicals kill the good stuff worms and other micro organisms love and need to eat to live. my goal in gardening and life is to never do harm. i strive for live soil. this is just one farm girls opinion. happy days sherrye
the learn as we go silk purse farm
farmgirl #1014
"You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me." -CS Lewis |
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Garden Gate: garden question |
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garden question
