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Garden Gate:  Newspaper mulch  |
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GaiasRose
True Blue Farmgirl
2552 Posts
Tasha-Rose
St. Paul
Minnesota
2552 Posts |
 Posted - May 08 2007 : 4:11:53 PM
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How many of you have tried this and what was you experience with it? We are considering this instead of straw and leaves this year.
i dont have many weeds due to some nice good black dirt last year and my soil this year is jsut amazing, but better safe than sorry.
i didn't mulch my tomatos last year and some of them got blossom end rot.
so tell me about your newspaper mulch?
~*~Brightest Blessings~*~
Tasha-Rose
Blogs: http://gaiarose.wordpress.com
http://tasharose365.wordpress.com/
Homepage:
http://gaiasrose.etsy.com
http://ForestFaeries.etsy.com
Birth is safe, interference is risky; TRUST BIRTH |
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Horseyrider
True Blue Farmgirl
1045 Posts
Mary Ann
Illinois
1045 Posts |
Posted - May 08 2007 : 7:31:09 PM
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Funny you'd bring that up; I just talked about that with my hubby over the weekend.
It was AWFUL. I followed the directions to snug the thick layers up to the plants and water them until they were sopping wet. They looked like they'd stay forever, and then I could till them in that fall. But within a day the prairie winds dried them and then they started flying!!! OMG there were newspapers everywhere, and I must've looked like the local loony trying to snatch them back out of the air again. I thought if I put dirt on them I could hold them down, but then it defeats the weed barrier idea, doesn't it? I went back to grass clippings and decided to forget about using newspaper mulch while I live on the prairies of Illinois. |
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DaisyFarm
True Blue Farmgirl
1646 Posts
Diane
Victoria
BC
Canada
1646 Posts |
Posted - May 08 2007 : 8:14:41 PM
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Firstly, calcium should end the blossom-end rot on your tomatoes.
I have used newspaper mulch with great success (except for the year my chickens got into it and shredded it!). I lay down newspapers, four or five sheets thick, and then mulch with hay or grass clippings to hold it down. We have a couple of really nasty weeds here, the worst of them horsetail, and the newspaper mulch keeps them at bay. It lasts all season and gets tilled in in the spring. I would sure recommend giving it a shot, but you will have to mulch it or else join Mary Ann in the chase!
Di
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Buttercup
True Blue Farmgirl
1433 Posts
Talitha
Vermont
USA
1433 Posts |
Posted - May 08 2007 : 8:58:24 PM
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Oh Mary Ann!! I couldn't help but giggle at the thought of one of us farm gals chasing newspaper clippings all over the place!  Bless your heart! What a pain!! But I bet it was cute n all to watch! 
I have done it before like Di with mulch on top and it helped alot!
Happy gardening!
Hugz!
Talitha
"If we could maintain the wonder of childhood and at the same time grasp the wisdom of age, what wonder,what wisdom,what life would be ours" |
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elah
True Blue Farmgirl
349 Posts
Emily
SW
Michigan
USA
349 Posts |
Posted - May 09 2007 : 05:10:01 AM
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| I've done it before in my flower beds that would get grass and weeds really bad. I put a layer of shredded wood mulch over it and it work great! Never had weeds or grass poke through. It work 10x's better then the weed fabric you can by at the store. But you do have to hold it down with something... |
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Bee Haven Maven
True Blue Farmgirl
1862 Posts
Beverly
Pennsylvania
USA
1862 Posts |
Posted - May 09 2007 : 08:02:43 AM
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I just couldn't stop my chickens from stealing the crossword puzzles...you know how smart those birds are....and they always want something to read while they are laying. :)lol
Keep Smiling.....Bev
Check out my shoppe at www.honeybeez.etsy.com
www.beehavenacres.blogspot.com |
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lisamarie508
True Blue Farmgirl
2648 Posts
Lisa
Idaho City
ID
USA
2648 Posts |
Posted - May 09 2007 : 2:43:23 PM
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I use newspaper every year with grass clippings on top like Diane does. It works wonderfully and it's much cheaper than the black fabric. I also used it when I created my raised beds to keep the weeds from coming up through the new dirt. It's been 3 years for some of those beds and still no weeds.
We come from Nature, we go back to Nature; health & happiness in between requires intimacy with Nature. |
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MullersLaneFarm
True Blue Farmgirl
596 Posts
Rock Falls
IL
596 Posts |
Posted - May 11 2007 : 09:50:19 AM
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Another successful user of newspaper (the thicker the better - NO GLOSSY COLOR though). DH brought home large cardboard boxes that I'm using this year.
Blossom end rot - add epsom salts to your hole when you plant
Cyndi
Muller's Lane Farm http://www.mullerslanefarm.com
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Edited by - MullersLaneFarm on May 11 2007 09:51:00 AM |
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Alice Jackson
Farmgirl at Heart
5 Posts
Alice
Stayton
OR
USA
5 Posts |
Posted - May 13 2007 : 8:35:20 PM
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| I have used shredded newpaper with good results. I live in Oregon and it rains alot so I don't have problems with the wind taking the paper. I just keep adding it when it needs more and pretty soon I see it broken down and the worms are really delighted. I've put bark on top to make it look a little prettier, but in the back I just keep adding it. It is great using up all the junk mail. |
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mommatracy
True Blue Farmgirl
490 Posts
Tracy
My. Olive
NC
USA
490 Posts |
Posted - Jun 03 2007 : 4:23:32 PM
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| My sister has always used newspapers for weed control. She lays them down sprays them with a hose and then puts a nice thick layer of pine straw on top. Pine straw is beautifulas a mulch. I have also tried this and it works. She never has grass or weeds pop through. Tracy from NC |
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Patsy
True Blue Farmgirl
592 Posts
Illinois
USA
592 Posts |
Posted - Jun 04 2007 : 07:55:29 AM
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Mary Ann,
I live in east central Illinois and the prairie winds are blowing today. I use newspaper mulch but like some of the other I use grass clippings or bark chips over it. It is a great weed barrier and I need some right now around my roses.
Sometimes I use my paper shredder and put that around the plants. I decomposes almost right away. But don't use any colored paper.
May God bless those who love the soil,
Patsy
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GaiasRose
True Blue Farmgirl
2552 Posts
Tasha-Rose
St. Paul
Minnesota
2552 Posts |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Jun 04 2007 : 10:47:10 AM
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I am glad you ladies brought this back up- I was wondering how I was going to keep my garden weeded an moist while I am gone on vacation. I think I will do the newspapers and put lawn clippings on top to weigh them down. I think it will help keep the soil moist too- always good to conserve water!
Alee |
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Garden Gate: Newspaper mulch |
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Newspaper mulch
