Membranes, mulching

Mulching is a key technique in organic soil management but it is also an incredibly useful way of suppressing weeds. A thick covering of a loose mulch will prevent weed seeds in the soil from germinating. A mulch membrane—such as cardboard or permeable plastic—laid over the soil will prevent weed growth. 

Leaf mold (see pp.44-45) is a homemade, short-term mulch. Best used over a membrane. For annual or perennial beds. 

Gravel and slate waste are good around plants that like dry, hot conditions. A mulch membrane beneath the gravel will stop them from working down into the soil and hence make these decorative mulches last longer. 

For something different, glass chips, made from recycled glass, are available in a range of colors. They have no sharp edges. Only for use over a mulch membrane. 

A mulch membrane, weed barrier, or weed control fabric is simply a sheet of synthetic or biodegradable material that forms a physical and light-excluding barrier to weed growth. Membranes can be used to clear annual and perennial weeds from open ground and beds. They are also used to prevent weeds from growing on ground that has been cleared. 

Holes can be cut to allow planting through the membrane as appropriate. Membranes may be covered with a loose mulch, to hold them in place, extend their life span, and improve their appearance. A mulch membrane must be permeable, to allow air and water into the soil, unless it is only to be kept in place for a few months. However, to suppress the more vigorous perennial weeds (see also pp.80-81), the membrane may need to be in place for several years while there are several biodegradable choices of membrane material, a nonbiodegradable material is the more practical option in such situations. 

Mulch membranes Cardboard below, left) used as a mulch membrane around nonornamental plants synthetic landscape fabric (right) controlling weeds in a strawberry patch. 

A light-excluding mulch membrane will stop weeds from growing, and will, in time, kill them. If you want to convert an area of lawn into a vegetable or flower bed, mulch it in the spring and it will be clear by the fall, if not before. Persistent perennials may take a couple of years or more to die. Vigorous annual plants. 

For the ultimate soft surface, choose a bark or woodchip mulch, spread In a thick layer over a weedproof membrane— both economical and easy to lay. 

Bulky soil improvers spread over vegetable beds to condition and feed the soil applying water correctly at the roots of plants, rather than pouring it over the leaves the need for hoeing is reduced in these close-planted beds shallots growing through a mulch membrane for moisture retention and weed control. 

Typical applications packaging, industrial application, films fibers, foams, medical artificial bones and transplant supplies and processing, and modification of bandages, packaging fihns, food containers, mulching fihn, membranes, vehicle accessories, garden furniture, recyclable plastics... 

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