Water wise garden - Landscape Fabric: Yes or No?

11 years ago

I am a new home owner in Southern California hoping to turn our weed covered front yard into water wise area covered in mulch and rock with a few plantings. I am trying to figure out if we should use landscape fabric or if it is a waste of time. If yes do you have an recommendations for fabrics to use. Thanks.

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Humsi

11 years ago

last modified: 11 years ago

We do use thick landscape fabric in areas we don't plan to plant anything (walkways and slow-growing succulent areas mostly). We cover it with at least 4" of bark to keep the light out, and generally get no weeds other than an easily pulled stray here or there that rooted in the bark. Every few years we move the bark, shake it around to get rid of dirt and replace it, add new if necessary (and any fabric that needs it). Much less work than constantly pulling weeds out of mulch directly over dirt. I'm lazy, two or three days of work every few years bothers me less than weeding daily.

*edit* I personally would definitely put fabric under any areas you plan to gravel. The people we bought our current house from had a thick gravel RV pad (put in for the sale of the house and never used) and that thing was absolutely rotten with weed issues until we removed it....which was a whole other pain because then you end up with gravel embedded in the dirt and it's very, very difficult to remove it all if you ever change your mind. If you have a layer of thick fabric under the gravel, much easier to deal with cleaning it or getting rid of it.

I wouldn't use the fabric/mulch under anything that drops leaves, needles or berries though, that can be a nightmare. Probably better to let it be a nightmare without the fabric.

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Comments (6)

Nil13 usda:10a sunset:21 LA,CA (Mount Wash.)
11 years ago
Don't use landscape fabric, you'll regret it.
Suzi AKA DesertDance So CA Zone 9b
11 years ago
Not sure if this will help, but when our putting green went in (fake turf), they used quick-crete over weed cloth and there have been zero weeds. It's been in for one year. I wouldn't put the quick -crete where I wanted the plantings though. We knew we were going to put a citrus tree at one end of the rough part of the green, and they left an area open for that tree. The tree is thriving. Weeds try to grow under it, but we just pull them when they are tiny.

You could do your mulch and rocks on top of the quick crete.

Step by step is here: https://www.pinterest.com/dances4wins/~highlands-putting-green/
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User
11 years ago
What Nil13 says. Previous homeowner here used it in various places and WHAT A MESS. Thirteen years later I am still grubbing out bits and pieces of it. It does not prevent weeds because, over time, soil/organic debris accumulates on top of the fabric and the weeds just grow there, with abandon.
hoovb zone 9 sunset 23
11 years ago
extra cost for no gain; weeds simply grow on top of the fabric. If you have at least 4" of mulch you would not get many weeds, landscape fabric or not. Spend the money on mulch and reapply mulch regularly. As it breaks down it enriches the soil; long term eliminating the need for a lot of fertilizer.
Humsi
11 years ago
last modified: 11 years ago
I disagree. I do have areas with mulch and no fabric (under my avocados and citrus mainly), and I am constantly weeding. The avocado leaf mulch particularly is probably about 6-8" deep and grass and Mexican palm seedlings are still the bane of my existence. I have no weeds on the fabric areas, and if you maintain it as I mentioned, you will not get dirt for weeds to grow in it. I have some areas we've been neglecting that haven't been cleaned up in...oh, geez like 5 years, weedless except around the edges (yes, there's a stray here or there that you can pull with no effort, unlike those rooted in soil under mulch). Especially if the OP is thinking about gravel mulch...that's just a mess after a few years and almost impossible to clean up without a barrier between the gravel and the dirt. Been there, done that, sucks.

Improving the soil, you have a point. As I mentioned though, we use it in areas where we aren't planting anything (walkways) or around slow-growing plantings like succulents or cacti that don't really care what the soil is like.

YMMV. I personally love landscape fabric, in the right places.