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Zeb

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Suggestions on how to kill weeds.  I have tried may things, salt, vinegar, etc.  I do not want Round up in my yard.  I will be installing plants fairly soon.  The only thing I know to do at this point is pull the weeds, put down mulch and then small red river rocks after planting the plants.

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Get some landscape fabric after pulling the weeds and doing your planting. It lets water through but doesn't allow the weeds to grow. Then you can do either mulch or stones and won't have the weeds growing up between them. Garden centre in Riberas (next to where the 711 used to be).

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1 hour ago, Ferret said:

Get some landscape fabric after pulling the weeds and doing your planting. It lets water through but doesn't allow the weeds to grow. Then you can do either mulch or stones and won't have the weeds growing up between them. Garden centre in Riberas (next to where the 711 used to be).

Very good idea, so then the fabric is worked around the plants after they are installed?

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16 years ago we put down double landscape cloth ,crisscrossed where you see the river rock. weeds try to get started but can't take hold over cloth. The planters have some ground cover plants and the sharp lava red rocks over the soil,never have used any sort of weed killer on anything in our yard and we don't use a gardener,only tree guys when our palms need doing

garden 2014 012.jpg

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6 minutes ago, happyjillin said:

16 years ago we put down double landscape cloth ,crisscrossed where you see the river rock. weeds try to get started but can't take hold over cloth. The planters have some ground cover plants and the sharp lava red rocks over the soil,never have used any sort of weed killer on anything in our yard and we don't use a gardener,only tree guys when our palms need doing

garden 2014 012.jpg

It looks really good.  So, you have no fabric in the planter, only rocks and that is working.  My planter currently has only dirt and weeds in it, so I need to get rid of weeds, then do everything else and I want to make sure I do it the best way for minimal maintenance.

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Just now, Zeb said:

It looks really good.  So, you have no fabric in the planter, only rocks and that is working.  My planter currently has only dirt and weeds in it, so I need to get rid of weeds, then do everything else and I want to make sure I do it the best way for minimal maintenance.

I asked the landscaper about this issue and all he could suggest was a chemical.  I don't understand this as I am not the only person making this request.

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On 7/23/2022 at 11:01 AM, Zeb said:

Suggestions on how to kill weeds.  I have tried may things, salt, vinegar, etc.  I do not want Round up in my yard.  I will be installing plants fairly soon.  The only thing I know to do at this point is pull the weeds, put down mulch and then small red river rocks after planting the plants.

Faena

Few flowers in your "garden"

A neighbour uses cardboard rather than fabric and it seeems to be quite effective.

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22 hours ago, happyjillin said:

16 years ago we put down double landscape cloth ,crisscrossed where you see the river rock. weeds try to get started but can't take hold over cloth. The planters have some ground cover plants and the sharp lava red rocks over the soil,never have used any sort of weed killer on anything in our yard and we don't use a gardener,only tree guys when our palms need doing

garden 2014 012.jpg

A rocky garden

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By the way, around 30 years ago in Canada I used landscape cloth under two separate, large  areas..... one to cover with rock and the other with bark chips (very plentiful and widely used on Vancouver Island).  Was not at all pleased with the results.  So in last (rental) with LL permission, took out all the grass in 25 x 40 foot inner garden, leaving existing trees etc in place and designing what/where new ones would go, and put down gravel after carefully cleaning where grass was removed.  Scraped back gravel enough to plant where wanted, a few at a time, and pushed into place again.

Did we get some weeds? Yes.  But with diligent hand pulling ( to get the roots) in the end it worked just fine and the weeds ended too. Large flat slate-rocks made interesting pathways for easier walking.

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51 minutes ago, Natasha said:

By the way, around 30 years ago in Canada I used landscape cloth under two separate, large  areas..... one to cover with rock and the other with bark chips (very plentiful and widely used on Vancouver Island).  Was not at all pleased with the results.  So in last (rental) with LL permission, took out all the grass in 25 x 40 foot inner garden, leaving existing trees etc in place and designing what/where new ones would go, and put down gravel after carefully cleaning where grass was removed.  Scraped back gravel enough to plant where wanted, a few at a time, and pushed into place again.

Did we get some weeds? Yes.  But with diligent hand pulling ( to get the roots) in the end it worked just fine and the weeds ended too. Large flat slate-rocks made interesting pathways for easier walking.

When you say you were not pleased using the landscape cloths, do you mean esthetically or weed prevention wise?

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14 minutes ago, Zeb said:

When you say you were not pleased using the landscape cloths, do you mean esthetically or weed prevention wise?

Weed prevention.  Cloth not visible under the rocks or the bark chips, but toughies poked up and made little "tents" so then I had to push back cover material, find  nearest overlap seam, pull the weeds, put it all back together............. sigh

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Thank goodness that in many areas we can still make proper gardens with grass and florwers-nothing beats them.

My dogs love the grass.

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59 minutes ago, Natasha said:

Weed prevention.  Cloth not visible under the rocks or the bark chips, but toughies poked up and made little "tents" so then I had to push back cover material, find  nearest overlap seam, pull the weeds, put it all back together............. sigh

That means that you didn't properly treat the base before you put down the cloth. Never had that problem with ours in 16 years. By the way we did the same thing in our backyard in Edmonton after our 2 female dogs destroyed our  freshly laid sod in no time in their designated pee spots which was in about 8 places

picking adventures 073.jpg

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42 minutes ago, cedros said:

Thank goodness that in many areas we can still make proper gardens with grass and florwers-nothing beats them.

I have proper gardens with lots of flowers. I can view grass in parks but find it silly to waste water on something that you have to cut constantly because you watered it. And anyone with dogs,especially female are fighting a losing battle grass wise.

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1 hour ago, Natasha said:

Weed prevention.  Cloth not visible under the rocks or the bark chips, but toughies poked up and made little "tents" so then I had to push back cover material, find  nearest overlap seam, pull the weeds, put it all back together............. sigh

Uh.....

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That means that you didn't properly treat the base before you put down the cloth

 Sorry but Edmmonton and Victoria are two VERY different things. I wasn't the only in Victoria with similar results with landscape cloth.... including Victoria Parks and Gardens Dept.  In Edmonton we got down on our knees and gave thanks if anything lived thru the winter.  In Victoria, you can't leave a shovel on the ground for 10 minutes or it takes roots and sprouts!

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22 minutes ago, happyjillin said:

That means that you didn't properly treat the base before you put down the cloth. Never had that problem with ours in 16 years. By the way we did the same thing in our backyard in Edmonton after our 2 female dogs destroyed our  freshly laid sod in no time in their designated pee spots which was in about 8 places

picking adventures 073.jpg

What would be the "proper" preparation of the base?

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2 minutes ago, Natasha said:

That means that you didn't properly treat the base before you put down the cloth

 Sorry but Edmmonton and Victoria are two VERY different things. I wasn't the only in Victoria with similar results with landscape cloth.... including Victoria Parks and Gardens Dept.  In Edmonton we got down on our knees and gave thanks if anything lived thru the winter.  In Victoria, you can't leave a shovel on the ground for 10 minutes or it takes roots and sprouts!

All well and good, but neither Victoria or Edmonton is here. I had success in Edmonton where lots of plants live through the winter and here because I did it correctly and more important. easily.

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13 minutes ago, Zeb said:

What would be the "proper" preparation of the base?

Our contractor removed all vestiges of any plant growth which also meant getting rid of some crappy top soil down to the clay like stough and dding mor clay like soil to the profile we wanted and then tamping it thoroughly with a gas powered unit. the planters we filled with plant friendly excellent soil. My wife enjoys maintaining the garden including trimming the 2 fruit trees. Do it right the first time is the key to hassle free.

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45 minutes ago, happyjillin said:

Our contractor removed all vestiges of any plant growth which also meant getting rid of some crappy top soil down to the clay like stough and dding mor clay like soil to the profile we wanted and then tamping it thoroughly with a gas powered unit. the planters we filled with plant friendly excellent soil. My wife enjoys maintaining the garden including trimming the 2 fruit trees. Do it right the first time is the key to hassle free.

Well this is a recently built elevated flower bed that was recently filled with new soil from the Garden Center, so should be no bad soil, however, weeds have come up.

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