The man who owned my home before I did, loved the stuff. It was everywhere and has taken me a while to get rid of it. The problem with it was that weeds seemed able to grow through it but plants I wanted seemed to have trouble with it--plus it is impossible to amend the soil with that stuff down. A nice layer of mulch seems to work much better for me--plus the mulch eventually composts itself and improves the soil.

So to answer your question. NO. I don't like it.

The young man who installed my raised beds for vegetables used a very heavy version of it on the cleared level site, when the cedar beds were in, between and around the beds, under a thick layer of bark chips, so I don't have to deal with weeds etc on the area surrounding the beds. Last year was the first year, and it worked great.
The one time I used it in a garden I had the same experience as gardenatlanta.

I'm never done with the garden, so it's a very bad idea for me. If you move plants around a lot, you have to slice open a new spot every time, defeating the purpose. I find that weeds grow anyway, since dirt gets on top of it.
Renee

It was put down some time long before I purchased the townhouse. I loathe the stuff!

The landscapers come along every spring and add another 2" of shredded hardwood mulch to what's already there. Thanks to the fabric, the old stuff never gets the opportunity to truly decompose into the soil. Instead there's now a new soil horizon (made of 100% composted hardwood mulch) sitting on top of the landscape fabric ready for any and all weed seeds to germinate in it!

:(((((((

(Yes, I tear it out bit by bit as I plant stuff.)

The only use for it, IMO, is under a path, as sunny said, or an area you aren't planting in. We had an area in the back of our house that received no sun and stayed wet. Our air conditioners were there and it would get swampy and weedy. I wanted to put down pebbles, but was afraid they would simply sink in to the muck. So we put down two layers of the landscape fabric and put the pebbles on top. It's been 5 years and we haven't had any weeds in that area since then.

I think it is a waste of money. It looks OK the first year. But, weed seeds come form above, not below. They land on top and germinate anyway. Their tiny feeder roots grow right through the fabric and anchor the weed to the fabric. It is twice as much work to remove them, often resulting in holes in the fabric.

As stated above, it prevents the mulch from improving the soil.

It took me a long time to rip it out.

We put fabric down in some cemetery plots when I didn't know any better. Colonizing roses like Duchess of Portland send up canes right through it, or run along under the fabric until they get to the edge of it. What a mess.

Plants like nutsedge and bermuda grass come up through it, too. It does block germinating seeds.

I don't like the fact that it stops the decomposition process - mulch needs to be in contact with the soil.

We've been pulling it up out of the planting areas, especially where people trying to dig up weeds or plant things have left it all crumpled up like unmade bedsheets.

At home, I did use some fabric along my driveway, piled mulch on it and left it alone. That's worked fine. I put it under pathways, too, with no problem, but my husband cannot grasp why weeds are still growing in the paths. No matter how many times I explain that they aren't growing THROUGH the fabric, but on top of it, he still says "but there shouldn't be any weeds at all!" No, there "shouldn't" be, but there are.

I use sheets of cardboard topped with mulch as a weed blocker - works fine.
Anita

I can attest to the truth of Anita's note that bermuda grass comes right up through the stuff. Talk about "UNstoppable!"

Jeri

I don't like it, but I can't use newspapers, either. The quack grass grows right up, through the newspaper!

What works best for me is growing lots of groundcover plants, between my larger shrubs, roses, and perennials. Alyssum is my favorite, followed by sweet woodruff (in shady areas) and strawberries. You still have to weed, but the plants shade the soil and the weeds are much easier to pull out :)

Yea think I'll stay with the newspaper I've always liked the fact that my layering of manure and mulch helps amend the soil. But think with my new massive beds I'm making I just might lay it in the paths and get pebbles for the paths in between.

I so wish I could find a good perennial ground cover for my zone that would not interfere with my roses.

Like most I find that landscape fabric has problems. The problems magnify when new plants and bushes are added.
We are however considering using it under a new load of gravel on the driveway which leads to the barn.
I cant think of what else to do to prevent weeds. I just dont use any type of herbacide. So maybe this is the right application for it.
Jeannie

Only in the paths. I think the 25-year stuff works pretty good. A few weeds grow on top of it but can easily be pulled up. There's one grass-looking weeds that comes right through even this stuff. Amazing!

Here is a link that might be useful: If only sweat were irrigation...

It's nothing but trouble IMHO. Try ripping that stuff up after it has somehow gotten 6" of soil on top of it. The really nasty weeds find a way to get threw it. Whatever time it saves you in the present,...it will come back to haunt you, & you'll wish you never got it. I use (clean) cardboard

Not just no but hell no. The weeds grow right on top of it only now they have a really good anchor to put their roots into. And the stuff never ever comes out of your garden. Instead of newspaper I use layers of cardboard with mulch on top. It works whenever I'm making new gardens.

I agree for all the reasons mentioned that it's nothing but trouble .

About 40 years ago I made the mistake of putting down thick black plastic over my 60 X 80' garden. Well, the new construction upstream deposited 4" of clay and gravel over the plastic.
What a mess! I was a lot younger then, but still all that work would not be good for anyone.
Mulch and more mulch appears to do the trick.

rosewinda, you are looking for good perennials to plant with your roses? I recommend geranium "Jolly Bee" and Santa Barbara daisies. I also like golden sage planted around roses. It stays low.
Renee

Someone gave me a huge roll of this stuff.From reading this topic, I gather that it's only good to use for paths.My idea was to put the fabric down,put soil on top,and sow a shallow-rooted groundcover in this soil. In other words, the concept would be that the fabric would be there just to keep weeds at bay long enough to allow the ground-cover to establish itself. Being by nature shallow-rooted, the ground cover could then cope with and grow comfortably in spite of the presence of the fabric beneath it's roots.What do you all think of this idea? thanks, bart

Bart,
You still would prevent an organic mulch from improving your soil and I don't see how this will prevent weeds much better than just the ground cover alone. Or ground cover plus mulch.

Trust us. There's a reason somebody gave it to you.

Creates the perfect growing environment for bermuda grass, which in turn fastens it firmly in place. Also a cool, shady spot under which gophers mound and moles ridge furrow. Tenacious weed seeds sprout and crab grass flourishes through it.

The concept was great in theory but is a train wreck in practice. Nasty, nasty stuff.

I'm so glad I read this thread as I was planning on using it in my flower beds. I'll stick to cardboard. I've actually used both in the past and think cardboard works better but figured I'd just gotten the wrong type of landscape fabric.

For more on landscape fabric and mulching with paper products (scroll down to Mulches section)...

Here is a link that might be useful: Horticultural Myths

Bboy, that's a great link. I'm emailing it to all the gardeners I know.
Renee

Thanks for that link, Bboy. I didn't want to use landscape fabric (hubby did) and he didn't want to use cardboard (I did) and this link solves both our dilemmas. I had decided to just use mulch and am happy with that decision, especially now.