We have had a small vegetable garden for the past few years and have slowly been conditioning the soil by composting etc.

We are not going to be planting a garden this Spring for a variety of reasons and are looking for advise on how to ensure we won’t be returning to a 3 foot tall garden of weeds later this summer.
I suggested something like Preen but my wife, who is a hazardous waste disposal expert, has specifically forbade the use of any man-made herbicides. She wants to keep it as organic as possible and I’m OK with that.

So what are the Sig Forum gardeners using for situations like this?
We will probably be planting a fall garden if that is important.

Thanks.

Just till it periodically like you do when the garden is planted and growing. It's about all you can do without using herbicides.

Jim

Thick layer of mulch?

Layer of heavy black plastic weighted down with concrete block or bricks.

There's ground cloth you can buy that's especially made for what you want. Get any existing weeds out, lay out the cloth, over-lapping it. Hold down with staples you can obtain in any garden center. Maybe bricks or heavy stones, here and there, in case the wind really kicks up.

Advantage is, when you go to plant, you can just cut holes where you want to plant and plant. Water and fertilizer go right through. The only weeds you'll have to worry about are any that manage to sneak in right next to the plants.

My wife uses that stuff, now, during growing season. Beats hand-weeding or using things like Preen all season long.

quote:

Originally posted by Jimbo54:
Just till it periodically like you do when the garden is planted and growing. It's about all you can do without using herbicides.

Jim

The problem is that we will not be around to till it. Sorry if I didn’t make that clearer.

Are there any organic herbicides?

Definitely cover it with thick light blocking plastic. Even if you use something totally natural to inhibit weed growth it’ll have at least some effect on the work you’ve done to enrich the soil.

quote:

Originally posted by ensigmatic:
There's ground cloth you can buy that's especially made for what you want. Get any existing weeds out, lay out the cloth, over-lapping it. Hold down with staples you can obtain in any garden center. Maybe bricks or heavy stones, here and there, in case the wind really kicks up.

Advantage is, when you go to plant, you can just cut holes where you want to plant and plant. Water and fertilizer go right through. The only weeds you'll have to worry about are any that manage to sneak in right next to the plants.

My wife uses that stuff, now, during growing season. Beats hand-weeding or using things like Preen all season long.

This sounds like a real possibility. I had thought of just regular black plastic but my wife was wondering if the heat generated would be an issue for the worms etc...(don’t laugh!).

Clear plastic will give you an added bonus in that it will actually kill off a lot of weed seeds if you seal it up good and tight so it gets nice and hot. It will also kill your microbes though too. Those can be reintroduced with a compost tea.

We tried the landscape fabric once, and the problem we ran into is that sunlight deteriorated it to the point of it falling apart if touched or the wind flapped it. Apparently it's designed for under mulch, not exposed.

smlsig, we cover ours with thick plastic in the winter. When I pull a section up there are worms the size of dragons under there.

Never tried it but I’ve been reading about 20% vinegar as a non-selective (ie kills everything) herbicide that doesn’t leave a residue. Probably have to tinker with soil ph when you want to resume gardening.

Personally, I’d just cover it, weight down the cover, and resume gardening when you’re ready

In thinking about laying down a permeable fabric of some sort I remembered what we used in new construction for our driveway entrances.
It is a heavy woven geo textile fabric and I know it has lasted for several months and survived numerous heavy dump and concrete trucks running over it...

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074...1_t3_B079Y869N5?th=1

quote:

Originally posted by ubelongoutside:
We tried the landscape fabric once, and the problem we ran into is that sunlight deteriorated it to the point of it falling apart if touched or the wind flapped it.

Doesn't happen if you use the heavier-duty, commercial grade stuff. The stuff my wife put down: We simply pull whatever's left in the ground from the growing season (I help), roll it all up to one side, and throw a few bricks on it. Next spring: She just rolls it out and staples it back down.

I just double-checked with her. Heavy-duty black landscape fabric is her recommendation.

For the record: She earned Advanced Master Gardener certification from a program run by the state Agricultural Extension and the agricultural school at MSU.

I need to look into something like this for the freakin blackberry bramble nonesense behind my house. Just chopping obviously isnt the answer but I read about the vinegar mix and might try that. Maybe in conjunction with doing a ground cover then starting from scratch.

For weed control its a garden hoe and belting from a bread manufacture that the belt are worn or torn in the middles of rows.
Organic is the way to go,
Don't waste your money on neem oils,smothers the plant leaves but kills the bugs.

quote:

Originally posted by Anubismp:
I need to look into something like this for the freakin blackberry bramble nonesense behind my house. Just chopping obviously isnt the answer but I read about the vinegar mix and might try that. Maybe in conjunction with doing a ground cover then starting from scratch.

you might try some 30%+ vinegar from amazon.
works somewhat but grasses will come back from seed in the soil.

Till heavily, probably multiple times to slow weeds down, then add thick cardboard & bricks/blocks if you're only doing it for the year. Water will drain through & it will mostly break down.

Might be time to order some ammo to get heavy duty boxes

quote:

Originally posted by smlsig:

quote:

Originally posted by ensigmatic:
There's ground cloth you can buy that's especially made for what you want. Get any existing weeds out, lay out the cloth, over-lapping it. Hold down with staples you can obtain in any garden center. Maybe bricks or heavy stones, here and there, in case the wind really kicks up.

Advantage is, when you go to plant, you can just cut holes where you want to plant and plant. Water and fertilizer go right through. The only weeds you'll have to worry about are any that manage to sneak in right next to the plants.

My wife uses that stuff, now, during growing season. Beats hand-weeding or using things like Preen all season long.

This sounds like a real possibility. I had thought of just regular black plastic but my wife was wondering if the heat generated would be an issue for the worms etc...(don’t laugh!).

Worms are mobile, they will move it need be. The heat generated is actually a cure for some kinds of fungi that attacks cucumbers and other plants.

Plant a cover crop of clover. It will look nice and add some nitrogen to the soil . Till it under when you want to garden again.

I have used the black plastic trick, it works very well.