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Belts and Braces.

Lawrence GLawrence G Posts: 4
in Problem solving

Im sorting out my early spring garden tidy and want to lay some blue slate ontop of 2 of my beds. I have weeded and raked the area and was seeking some advice on laying weed matting down and then the stone on top.

Question - Is using both abit belts and braces or should i just use the stone? Also does anyone think i would be "sufficating" the soil beneath without regular addition of organic mulch?

Help please.

Posts

  • nutcutletnutcutlet Posts: 27,300

    I don't like weed matting on beds but if you've got to keep down something like ground elder I can see it has it's advantages. It will do away with worm action, there won't be anything under the matting for them to take into the soil. The plants you put it round won't be able to spread properly, maybe that's an advantage in some cases.

    Overall you could be left with some lifeless soil in the longer term.



    In the sticks near Peterborough
  • Lawrence GLawrence G Posts: 4

    Hmmm maybe just use the stones then and keep the matting for other areas. I dont wana stop the lovely worms

  • nutcutletnutcutlet Posts: 27,300

    I like to maintain the natural cycles of life.



    In the sticks near Peterborough
  • Mummy Muddy PawsMummy Muddy Paws Posts: 671

    It depends on what you want to do - are you going to do away with the beds altogether, or is this just a temporary measure?  If I'm going to lay down a pathway, I will put the weed surpressing membrane down, then put pea gravel or bark chippings or whatever on top.  If I want to use something later on I'd put a green manure on there now, or sow some native wildflowers for the bees, so it's actually 'in use' but can be returned to bedding quite quickly.  So it depends on what you have in mind for these areas in the long run, really!

  • gardengirl6gardengirl6 Posts: 223

    I once moved to a house where the flower beds in the front garden were all covered in mauve slate.    Ghastly stuff.    I couldn't mulch the soil to improve it, and planting anything into it was a nightmare.    I spent four years trying to remove it, and then moved house!

  • Mummy Muddy PawsMummy Muddy Paws Posts: 671

    Mauve slateimage?  Did they also have an aubergine bathroom suite???

    Don't blame you for trying to shift that!!

  • gardengirl6gardengirl6 Posts: 223

    Well, it looked mauve to me - but it might be the same as the blue slate that Lawrence G asked about!

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