skip to main content

Vegetable Gardening

can I use thatch and dead weeds to mulch my new garden beds?

gardningscomplicated

14 years ago

I need to clear some grass to create some new garden beds. And I'm wondering if I can do it by mowing or chopping down some dead weeds, and raking them up, along with a bunch of thatch. And using that as a mulch to smother the grass. I have about 5000 square feet of grass to deal with, and I don't have a large budget. So I'm hoping to use what I have. And I also want to be careful about what I import into the garden. So I'd rather use something that's already there. And I'm thinking I could use a hay fork to fluff it occasionally, if it needs some aeration. Would this work?

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (4)

homertherat
14 years ago
Yes, but be careful. If the weeds have already gone to seed before you mowed them down, you'll just be making a huge bed of weeds. I don't know if that will smother the grass enough, though. Lay out 6-8 sheets of newspaper where you plan on planting and put your weeds and stuff on top. Then add some "greens" (pretty much anything not completely dried out) and add another layer of weeds. Repeat this process until it's about 18" tall and water it in. This is probably the best way to make a new garden bed without tilling. It's known as lasagna gardening.
cyrus_gardner
14 years ago
Grass thach, and maybe even clippings, MAY grow back,
if contacted with the soil and get rain
on it.
This is especially true about BERMUDA / Zocia(?) and similat types.
What you can do is to spread it in the open, under sun and
let it bake an get bone dry and then use it as mulch.
Avoid weeds, as mulch. Instead compost them.
Related Discussions
Power raking--can removed thatch be used as mulch?
Q
Comments (1)
It can be used as material for a compost pile, but with the huge amount of seeds likely in it would not make for good mulch.
...See More
Reseeding - can i use raked out dead grass as covering mulch
Q
Comments (4)
Sounds like it would be better than the straw because u don't have to deal with it germinating and then u have wheat grass. I know it dies off, but it still annoys me.
...See More
Mulching a new garden with new plants! Did I make A BIG Error?
Q
Comments (4)
I don't think you have huge worries, but I am going to offer a differing opinion. I would not recommend burying the crown of many perennials with a thick layer of mulch. While most perennials (and bulbs) will easily push up through the mulch in spring, I can think of a good many perennials - typically those that maintain basal foliage throughout the winter - that will resent a heavy, winter wet topdressing over their crowns. It has a tendency to promote rot and encourage fungal problems. And while wood chips make an excellent mulch for trees and shrubs, I find them far less desirable for perennial plantings. Wood products require nitrogen-utilizing soil organisms to break down - mulching with wood chips will create a nitrogen deficiency at the soil surface. While this is not a problem for stronger, more deeply rooted plants like trees and shrubs, it can be an issue for the fine, shallow root systems common to perennials and annuals. Having cautioned about potential problems your wood chip mulching COULD produce, I don't think you should see any ill effect this coming spring - as your plants are so newly planted, extensive root systems have not been established and if you couldn't differentiate where the perennials were planted, there is likely no basal foliage involved. I would however apply a nitrogen-based fertilizer (alfalfa meal, bloodmeal, etc) in spring as new growth to offset any possible depletion. And avoid working the chips into the soil. Mulch materials are purely a personal and availability preference. But I believe coarse textured, wood-based mulches have little place in a perennial planting bed. Their heavy texture tends to detract from the plantings, you have the issue of possible nitrogen depletion to contend with and they offer little in the way of soil improvement. Compost, either your own or commercially bagged (or bulk), is a far better choice. Save the wood chips for your tree and shrub plantings or for garden paths.
...See More
Annual Weeds Blanketed My New Beds, Mulch?
Q
Comments (6)
If you pull them before seeds are dropped, you should see exponentially fewer next year. The first year of a garden spot, there's usually a disheartening explosion of unwanted plants. If you're diligent this year, next year should seem like a breeze! You may be able to scrape the soil surface (like with the flat backside of a metal rake or flat-edge shovel) to get rid of some kinds of seedlings, then a week or 2 later, pull the tenacious ones that kept going. If you lose control in some spots, a string trimmer can chop everything off near soil level if you see flowers, to buy more time and prevent the flowers from ripening/dropping seeds for another crop of unwanted plants next year. Between rows/plants, you can use grass from mower bag (if mowing before grass makes seeds,) straw, leaves, mulch, cardboard, pine needles, whatever organic matter you have handy, to help with weed suppression (while helping to improve the soil at the same time.)
...See More
gardningscomplicated
Original Author
14 years ago
homer - I was thinking about using cardboard or newspaper. But my problem is, I'd need an awful lot of it. The area wasn't mowed at all last year, so I have a pretty thick layer of dead grass and weeds. So I thought that might be the easiest thing for me to use. It's already there, and it's free. And I'm thinking the deer probably ate a lot of the seed, since they graze there regularly. Although, it may just go in one end, and out the other:) I thought about straw too. But again, I'd need a lot to make a thick mulch. If I can just get by this year with an acceptable mulch, I can try something better for next year. Like maybe a cover crop. I don't know much about cover crops, but I think it would work. Except I think it needs to be done in the fall.
gardningscomplicated
Original Author
14 years ago
cyrus - I don't think it's bermuda. I looked it up, and it's not common in southeast Michigan. But I'm not really sure what it is. I don't mind if a little grows back, since I'm expecting to do some weeding. I'll try to improve it for next year. But if a lot grows back, that could be a problem. I'll have to take another look at it, and see how wet it is. The snow just melted. And we had some rain recently. So it's probably going to need some time to dry.

Related Stories

GARDENING GUIDES 5 Things to Know About Weeding and Mulching Your Native Garden

By Oakley Gardens

What’s the best time to pull weeds? How thick should the mulch be? Here’s the scoop for a healthy landscape

EDIBLE GARDENS Natural Ways to Get Rid of Weeds in Your Garden

By Abundant City

Use these techniques to help prevent the spread of weeds and to learn about your soil

GARDENING GUIDES New Ways to Think About All That Mulch in the Garden

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

Before you go making a mountain out of a mulch hill, learn the facts about what your plants and soil really want

GARDENING GUIDES How to Pick a Mulch — and Why Your Soil Wants It

By Jocelyn H. Chilvers

There's more to topdressing than shredded wood. Learn about mulch types, costs and design considerations here

GARDENING GUIDES 5 Ways to Naturally Win the Weed War

By Jocelyn H. Chilvers

Show irksome weeds no mercy with these tricks for combating them sans chemicals

GARDENING GUIDES The Art of Green Mulch

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

You can design a natural garden that doesn’t rely on covering your soil with wood and bark mulch

GARDENING GUIDES What’s in a Name? See 6 Wildflowers That Aren’t ‘Weeds’ at All

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

Dispel the stereotypes of weeds and try these wildlife-supporting native wildflowers in your garden

GARDENING GUIDES 5 Weed-Smothering Ground Covers

Let these landscape plants do the dirty work of choking out weeds while you sit back and enjoy the view

GARDENING GUIDES Tackle Weeds the Natural Way

By Jocelyn H. Chilvers

Instead of dousing your yard with chemicals to wipe out weeds, let time and nature work their magic via smothering and solarization

GARDENING GUIDES 10 Tips to Start a Garden — Can-Do Ideas for Beginners

By Alison Hodgson

Green up your landscape even if you're short on time, money and knowledge, with these manageable steps for first-time gardeners

Sponsored

Everingham Design

Columbus' Home Design Experts Specializing in Custom Cabinets

More Discussions

Ferry -Morse is garbage

14

Hardening seeding temperatures

17

Do carpenter bee traps work?

7

What are rabbits favorite veggies?

11

How long do you harden off seedlings?

3