Landscape fabric, weed barrier and weed barrier fabric are names for the same product. It is a black mesh type of plastic that is used extensively in landscaping to keep weeds out of your garden. Does it keep the weeds out? Does it let water through to the plants? Lets have a look at the effectiveness of landscape fabric.
Landscape Fabric – Weed Barrier Cloth
This is how landscape fabric is advertised to work. You place it on the ground and cover it with mulch. Weeds already in your soil can’t grow through the cloth so they die. Weeds can’t grow on the cloth, so any sprouting seeds also die. Voila! No weeds.
Don’t Buy Into the Landscape Fabric Myth.
It is true that seeds sprouting under the cloth will not grow through it. However, strong perennial weeds will eventually grow through or around it. Many perennial weeds can grow quite a distance under ground and since landscape fabric comes in 3 and 4 foot wide roles they only need to grow a few feet to find an opening.
If you use a thin cover of mulch, weeds do not grow in the mulch because it is just too dry there. But in no time at all you will see the landscaping fabric stick up through the mulch and then it looks terrible in your garden.
If you use more mulch to hide the weed barrier, wind and water deposits soil particles and plant remains onto the cloth. In no time at all you have the perfect seed mix sitting right above the weed barrier, and weeds start to grow. Believe me when I say that plant roots can grow through the holes in the landscape fabric.
Weed barrier cloth is no better for controlling weeds than a 4 inch layer of mulch.
Landscape Fabric Stops Rain
Weed barrier cloth is porous (ie it has holes in it) and it is advertised as ‘letting the rain flow through’. This is mostly a gardening myth. The reality is that some rain will go through the holes, but much of it flows over top of the cloth and away from your plants, which remain dry.
Weed Barrier Sucks the Life out of Your Soil
I’ve talked many times about the importance of life in the soil. Landscape fabric reduces the air reaching the soil, and prevents any new organic matter from getting to the surface of the soil. It does not take long and the dew worms, microbes and other soil life, which depends on air and food, either leave or die. When this happens, there is a reduction of nutrients for your plants, and soil structure starts to degrade. Neither is good for your plants.
Permanent Plantings are Damaged
In permanent landscapes, plant roots will grow into and through the landscape fabric. At some point in the future when it is replaced (needs to be replaced every 10 years or so), you will damage the roots.
Is There a Good Use for Landscaping Fabric?
Maybe. If you are planting trees in uncultivated land that is very weedy, there is a benefit to using the weed barrier around the tree for a few years in order to keep the weeds down, and give the tree a chance to get established. The tree roots have less competition for space and nutrients. The loss of water due to the weed barrier is offset by the fact that the weeds are no longer using the water. The landscape fabric should be removed after a couple of years once the tree is large enough and strong enough to compete with the weeds.
Recent scientific findings, reported by Dr Linda Chalker-Scott, suggest that a 6- 12 inch layer of wood chip mulch is just as effective. I have used the landscape fabric, as described above, for trees planted in fields, but have now switched to using just mulch.
More Reasons for NOT Buying Landscape Fabric
- it is a plastic and we don’t need more plastic in the environment
- plant roots growing on top of the fabric can’t withstand a drought as easily
- moving plants, and dividing plants is a nightmare because the weed barrier prevents you from digging new holes
- if you do get weeds they are near impossible to pull out
- it is relatively expensive for a product that does almost nothing!
References:
1) Photo Source: Two Women and a Hoe
Hi Robert,
I want to lay a dog run beside my house. At the moment it is just topsoil with few weeds. I was thinking of putting down weed barrier fabric and covering with washed rock. But after reading this that seems useless.
Would you say I should put down wood chips or newspaper first and then put the layer of rock over this or just put the rock down on it’s own?
Also what type of rock works best for this, Will pea-gravel be as effective as larger stones?
Cheers,
Mark
I don’t know anything about dog runs. If I was making a path for humans I would just lay down a 5 inch layer of 1/4 inch crushed rock. Pea gravel is difficult to walk on since it constantly shifts.
What type of wood chips do you recommend?
What ever you can get locally. Big chips are better than small ground up stuff.
The key is that it is organic, and that it is local. In some areas people use pecan shells – that is local and organic and works.
Robert I’m laying a border of one meter around my lawn, what is the best thing to put under these to suppress the weeds.
You need to provide more details.
I am desperate. I have a large steep slope that is covered with bindweed. I keep weeding and mulching but nothing is helping. Any suggestions?
I would use Roundup. Mulch 2 feet thick might get rid of bindweed.
I can’t believe that you recommend Roundup!!! I could cry with frustration. I was delighted when you advised against use of plastic in the garden but you have no problem with Roundup??!!!
I have used wet cardboard layers with wood shavings on top to suffocate bindweed with much success.
If you understand Roundup you would not be surprised. It is less toxic than vinegar and does less damage to soil than plastic or cardboard, both of which harm soil life by excluding air and water.
Cardboard rarely kills bindweed – it just travels under ground to a new location.
You are not able to use Roundup in Ontario. Do you have any other recommendations? Thanks!
The only other alternative is hand weeding.
Do I understand correctly that the ban is loaded with exceptions? For example, you can use Glyphosphate on Poison Ivy, but not for ‘cosmetic’ reasons?
Tell me how that gets enforced.
In Ontario glyphosate can be used when the weed poses a health hazard. Farms are exempt from the ban. Poison Ivy poses a health hazard.
There is no enforcement. Most stores either do not control it or don’t know the law.
I agree.Roundup (Glyphosphate).Bindweed can have roots up to 20 feet deep. You might try a combo of Roundup and covering with black plastic until you’ve conquered the infestation.It will probably take a couple of years.
My son spread perrinal wild flower seeds over my cloth like gray landscape rolls. He cover it with dirt, fertilize and mulched it. Will the seeds grow. He was making me a seed mat for wild flowers. If not do i need to cut out paper and remove debris and replant. Please let me know.
Thank you
I don’t know. It probably depends on the type of cloth. But I don’t see much benefit to doing all this work – just spread the seeds.
I am not a landscaping nor garden expert but I found commercial landscape fabric immensely costly. Thinking outside the box, this westcoast Canadian layered factory damaged rolls of window bug screens and grabbed recycled ones from customers that were free. Instead of it lying in a landfill, it was recycled for better use in my garden and landscape plants. Innovative and creative, this man layered bug screens (three sheets thick) on top of each other, and buried them out of sight and covered them with lava rocks or drain rock. The rain seeps through the fabric to get at the plants and lawn watering does the same. Weeds have a difficult time poking through as they cannot squirm through the blanketed porous screens. If one or two weeds pop up through they can be killed with cheap vinegar. Before you try this idea ask your local garden expert as their advice supersedes any home remedies. I went to several garden experts before trying it myself, and they unanimously thought it was a great idea, economical and imaginative. Window screen factory places or window screen services often have unuseable rolls of bug screen fabric that are defective. In my case, I gots rolls of it for free and they were happy to get rid of it. Again, this guy is not aware of any environmental issues and my landscaping garden is maintenance free for over 8 years while others use garden tools or get on their hands and knees to spend considerable time manicuring their projects. I would not recommend bark mulch as it is an attractant to bugs and ticks. While it looks great once it is first applied, after time it looks drab after being exposed to the elements. The sad thing is lava rock is expensive but it retains its color for a long time. Good luck..Btw, bug window screen fabric is far more porous and will not suffocate your garden projects like landscaping fabric or chemicals sprays that are not good for the environment, shrubbery or animals. Best of luck…if this works for your readership we all win with shared information.
It probably lets air and water through better than landscape fabric. Roots will still grow into it and it will still show if there is not enough mulch on top. I would not use it. Wood chips work just fine on their own and they add organic material to the soil.
Robert, I accept your view and you make a good comment about the benefits of wood chips. According to seasoned plant experts and botanist, it attracts unwanted harmful pests like ticks, sow bugs, termites, earwigs, ants, slugs and more. Termites are a huge problem and they can live in a moist wood chip pile and then hit your home to do incredible costly damage. Also, some wood chips from certain trees cannot be spread close to decorative or fruit trees trunks because of their toxicity, so be mindful what type of wood chips you use. Yes, you are correct that; some tiny roots weave through the bug screen fabric, but my idea has been maintenance free for over 12 years. Water still goes through, and so does air unlike landscape fabric. Why not recycle and reuse bug screens, similar to wood chips idea. Wood chips are organic material and will erode and their color will fade in time, whereas, bug screens (hidden under river rocks or lava rocks, will last longer than a human life a it will not break down in a waste dump landfill. Both ideas are great, and try them out to see what fits best for you,
Not sure which plant experts you are talking about but the science is fairly clear that wood chips do not increase pest problems. termites don’t like living in wood chips, and my slug problem is less since I use them.
Wood chips have not been found to be toxic – even walnut wood can be used without problems. At most you will get fewer seedlings.
Landscape fabric provided a nightmare for me when I planted strawberries in rows for what I thought was going to be an easy prevention of weeds. Not only did it NOT prevent weeds from growing, but the runners and weeds got trapped in the fabric, making it impossible for me to manage the four 50 foot rows that I had anticipated would bring much joy and production.. The worst problem was removing the fabric from the garden beds. Everything was so inter-grown that I had to virtually rip out everything – not an easy task. There are still remnants of that awful black stuff here and there.
I’ve never garden before, where I want to plant my vegetable garden has a lot of weeds. Would it be safe to use wood chips then the soil dirt on top to plant the vegetables. Usually my dogs don’t get in the area, but if they do with the stuff hurt them. Thank you
Wood ships should not be put under the soil – they will rob nitrogen from there. They won’t hurt dogs.
Thanks for the article…I have a garden about 30′ x 15’…I’m looking to downsize the garden and utilize say only about 10′ x 15′..so the other 20′ x 15′ I want to cover & not grow anything & not have any weeds sprout…I’m looking for something simple to accomplish this goal..I was thinking of buying some contractor grade fabric landscape fabric to cover the part of the garden I will no longer be using…What would be you’re recommendation for my goals?
Thanks for your time…
Landscape fabric will get weeds. Best thing to do is to cover it with 4 inches of wood chips. As a long term solution plant a ground cover that takes no effort and lets in no weeds. In zone 5 I recommend Geranium Geranium macrohizum.
Thanks so much…I will give the wood chips a try.
LOVE YOUR SITE, VERY EDUCATIONAL HOWEVER i NEED HELP!!!
HAVE PLANTED CAMILIAS IN A BED CONTAINING A VERY LARGE AMOUNT OF BLUE CLAY. WE DID ADD OTHER COMPOST AND SAND, BUT THE SOIL IS STILL HARD TACK, NOT LOOSE ENOUGH. SHOULD I REPLANT MY BUSHES, AFTER DIGGING AND PUTTING IN BETTER SOIL, OR WILL THEY GROW AND HOW CAN I tell if they are not doing as well as they should???
The best thing for trees and shrubs is to leave the soil alone and get them to grow in it. Add wood chip mulch on top of the soil. If they grow and flower you know they are doing well. If they don’t grow – there is a problem.
I don’t worry about “doing as well as they should”. I am only concerned with are they doing well enough to please me.