I would, based on the horror stories I’ve read on GardenWeb.

Yes..I removed all of it that previous homeowners put in..weeds were growing on top of it..underneath the soil was dry and rock hard..when the mulch breaks down it can't blend with the soil and improve it..it inhibits drainage..the plants won't do as well..the roots are growing in less than ideal soil..can you tell that I hate it? Lol..

It's an awful practice, never use that person again...he doesn't understand plants at all.

My previous home had it...it was terrible to get it all removed and it just absolutely kills the soil.

Yup. It interferes with movement of air, nutrient, and water exchange with the soil. Roots grow into it, both from your plants and from weeds, making the weeds more difficult to remove, as well as making the landscape fabric more difficult to remove when you realize how dreadful it is. It is reasonable to use it under masonry walkways, but otherwise avoid it.

It will work for a month or so and then you will have the most awful mess as stated above. Ask me how I know. The weeds sprout on top and grow roots down thru it. The stuff under it pokes through the fabric and goes wild. When you start wrestling it out of the bed, chopping, cutting, and pulling, you will find a very smooth and hard sub soil, almost like plastic. By the way, poison ivy loves it and will grow on top and under it.

Thanks. Luckily I don't have too much to pull up.

Plants that spread by underground runners like Morning glory, Horsetail, Canadian Thistle, etc, love it.

Pulled it all out. Can anyone recommend a good way to get the mulch all smooth and neat again? I used a bow rake with not so good results. Although the mulch is wet from rain, so maybe that's the problem.

Just give the mulch time to dry a little. You might want to try a leaf rake for a final finish.

good for you to take care of it so fast!..maybe push the mulch aside and rough up the soil a little then spread the mulch back in?

It rather looks as if mulch has been piled up round your tree too. That needs to be pulled back.

I did pull it back a couple inches from the trees and shrubs. How is it that just about every tree I see along the roadside has a volcano of mulch around it that is refreshed yearly by landscapers? Do they want the tree to die so they can come back in 10 years and get more business replacing them?

peter..I hate volcano mulching..unhealthy and I think it's UGLY..

But doubt most trees would die from it (looking at evidence around me), though I would say they probably aren't happy about it.

On a couple other subjects why the nursery-like double row of arborvitaes? That are soon going to grow into one another, form a block or clump? And the rhododendron is too close to the lawn, should instead by placed in the center of the triangle that part of the bed makes. If that shrub is pretty much all you are going to plant where it is.

The arborvitae are spaced 3 feet apart, which should be typical for a privacy hedge. The second row is overkill, but I really wanted the privacy right away.

That boursault rhododendron is listed to get 6-10' wide. When I marked it's spot, I was trying to give it a lot of space from the patio and that tree. I didn't really think about how far the mulch bed would go out, and the landscaper probably thought the bed would he huge had it extended out farther. I suppose I will need to extend it.

Looks great!

Beautiful! I especially love your brick patio, and I encourage you to remember that it’s your yard, so you get to be in charge.

When the time comes many years from now if it hangs over the patio it won't be nearly the same issue as if it gets in the way of mowing, starts getting banged into during that operation. And snipped away at, to beat it back from the lawn. Although that straight section of lawn edge should probably be made into a curve, that arcs out around where the shrub is anyway. Instead of having short curves at the corners with a straight run between.