In a recent newspaper article, Ann Lovejoy, a gardening guru of the Pacific Northwest, says deep mulching leads to victory over weeds. I agree with her, that deep mulching controls common weeds… but I have several varieties of grass (no not the smoking kind) that send runners out like bamboo that are impossible to control with mulch, no matter how much I put on.
After years of pulling the runners out and up and then mulching with several inches of wood chips, I have given up on the rose beds and am contemplating digging them out and planting more fruit trees. I can see why people resort to using chemical herbicides… They reach a 
point of frustration with the blade runners and want to keep the roses, or other flowers or whatever and spray away.
With the vegetables, I can control the grasses in the beds with rototilling (even though it disrupts the soil food web); but without rototilling I would be in the business of growing grass seed. Rototilling cuts the root runners into small pieces which with heavy alfalfa mulch only start to grow back in the fall when the crops are way bigger than they are. Then in the winter when the veggies are frozen out by frost, the grass starts taking over again until I rototill in the spring to start the cycle all over.
I have several acres of gardens, and like I said, am ready to convert to fruit trees. Controlling the grass is just too much work, especially when the grass just keeps coming back.
By the way, I get free wood chips from the electric line trimmer companies that cruise around my rural area every summer, trimming the trees near the electric lines. They are always looking for a place to dump their loads FOR FREE. Last year I didn’t get any and had to buy some wood chips at $35 a yard. Free is a very good price!
Top photo credit: Crinklecrankle’s Flickr.com photostream
Bottom photo credit: Jerry’s Flickr.com photostream
Hydroponics Dictionary
