Where, in days gone by the gardener had his or her work cut out trying to control weeds in the garden nowadays the use of Landscape Fabric has eased this load making time for other chores. Landscape Fabric comes in many different sizes, weights, strength and permeability as well as UV resistance and life expectancy so choosing the correct one as recommended for the job in hand is important.
The major use in horticulture of Landscape Fabric is for weed control in planting hedges and flower beds as the presence of weeds can be very detrimental to the growth of new plants since they will extract nutrition and water from the soil thus depriving new trees, shrubs and hedging plants.
It is preferable to clear the area of weeds initially before laying the fabric which will then block out the light preventing new weed growth but at the same time allowing air and moisture through the permeable fabric for new plants to thrive. This can be done either prior to planting or around established trees and shrubs, although the latter may be a little more difficult in ensuring that the fabric covers all of the area around the plants. In the past some people have used plastic sheeting, however this will not allow air through and moisture will run straight off thus stifling any growth in the soil.
The fabric can be secured to the ground with the large Landscape Fabric Staples or when planting is completed then a mulch of either woodchip or horticultural stone can be used to hold it down. Planting is usually carried out by cutting a cross in the fabric large enough to take the root system of bare root plants or the root ball of potted plants then closing the fabric around the plant base.
Do bear in mind that although the Landscape Fabric will prevent many weeds from growing through it is still possible that air-born seeds can settle and root on the top of the fabric especially if a wood mulch is used, however they will be easy to spot and remove before becoming too large.
