Topic: Weed Control Fabric

[mic]

Hello

Ive noticed some people seem to spend more time on their allotments than at home on my site. however i dont have that luxury and find that working hinders my social & home life quite drastically. so ive finally dug over a chunk of my allotment and bought a bit of Weed Control Fabric as im hoping it might support the plot in my absense.

tomorrow (monday) im looking to lay a couple of rows and maybe even plant my first bits that have been patiently growing in the greenhouse. as its not the best looking fabric (black with stripes) do i cover it over with a thin layer of soil to hide it and maybe help retain a bit of water or leave it on show to look a bit naff?

cheers

[gwynleg]

Hi Mic, I use the fabric as paths to save on having to weed those bits. It doesnt look that attractive but once things start growing near it it doesnt notice so much. I wouldn't put soil on top as weeds will grow it in and that s what you are trying to avoid. Do you have the stuff that lets water through? It still helps to retain some water even though its permeable so again i wouldn't worry.

[Ian Pearson]

I agree with gwynleg about not putting soil on it. But a light covering of woodchip or grass cuttings will hide it without letting weeds germinate. I suspect UV light leads to eventual breakdown, so some covering should prolong its useful life.

[Buster54]

Hi mic do you know you can get different thickness's of weed suppressant fabric ,similar to paper it goes on how high the number  the GSM is to determine its thickness,bought mine 6 years ago £80 100mx2m roll never stored it inside when not in use and still got some life in it,I use a gas soldering iron to cut mine stops it fraying

[Hector]

This is really useful/interesting...can I butt in and asked what a decent thickness is?

[Buster54]

Mine is 105gsm which is pretty good,anything thinner could let the light through

[Ian Pearson]

I can confirm that 50 gsm gets shredded in one year.