It’s easy. How you mulch makes such a huge difference for on-going weed maintenance.
In this 3 minute film, I show my new weed-free section of garden and contrast it with two other areas mulched differently…. The results speak for themselves even after just five weeks.
- No weeds – used compost, newspaper and mulch
- Some weeds – used compost and mulch (no newspaper)
- Weedy – used compost, but no newspaper or mulch.
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| Watch my new 3 minute film about weed-free mulching: https://youtu.be/Ymtj2yU_ov4 |
With the Spring warmth and rain, the weeds are growing fast and the difference is obvious.
The key is the newspaper – but not on the ground as usually described in no-dig garden instructions. I put my newspaper layer on top of the compost and cover it with mulch. I do this because the newspaper:
- stops weeds from the soil and compost layer
- keeps moisture in the compost layer (dries out more on top of paper)
- allows the soil organisms to access the compost more readily
- enables roots of plants to go deeper (you make a hold in the paper and plant into compost below)
Take a look through this No Dig Gardening link from my blog to get more background information and see the step by step pictures on how to make a successful and simple no dig garden. http://our-permaculture-life.blogspot.com.au/2016/01/morags-simple-successful-no-dig-garden.html
If you’d like more information about using newspaper, please check out this post too: http://our-permaculture-life.blogspot.com.au/2016/01/can-i-use-newspaper-in-my-garden.html
Happy Gardening!
What great timing as i start to make way in my garden for new veggie beds. Thanks for the great tip. I look forward to months of weed free gardening!
Hi Morag – Really enjoy your videos and blog posts. Just wondering what type of mulch you use?
Dear Morag, thank you for putting up so much helpful information. Your garden is looking so beautiful. I can absolutely see the advantages of mulching. And it is easy to put mulch around plants of a certain size. But I normally grow plants from seeds, so what about freshly sown seedlings of salad and light-dependent germinators, such as carrots?
Love your videos Morag – you have a wonderful delivery. I have flirted with no dig gardens on and off for about thirty years sometimes with good results sometimes a bit ho hum but I do always love to mulch – South Australian summers can be pretty brutal! My big problem is kikuyu grass it gets everywhere and I hate it! We inherited it as a lawn years ago and now I want it gone – I've tried smothering it,pouring boiling water on it but it always seems to win 🙁 Any suggestions please? Angela
Thank you for taking the time to post this excellent video. I will certainly be scavenging all my friends' old newspapers from now on!!