cardboard roll for garden

The only guarantee you will have is that the weeds will grow like crazy around the outside edge of the cardboard and any overhead irrigation will be reading them, not your new transplants. There is no published research demonstrating any beneficits to using cardboard sheets as a mulch so any discussion of it is anecdotal. Yes, cardboard sheet mulch kills off perennial roots, but that is only a symptom of the damage its use inflicts on *all* soil biology. About 2500 sq ft. is vegetable garden and orchard. So thats where we are, and thats where we will stay until there is rigorous, peer-reviewed, published evidence that says otherwise. They will reduce your pest problems. Linda, you say there is no science behind using cardboard, but then you say there is no science around it period! You would be surprised how far perennial weeds can extend their root system. Plastic is never organic nor is cardboard board. https://www.nacaa.com/journal/index.php?jid=1024, It works! After you scalp the lawn to the ground and then mulch it, yes, you will get rid of the lawn. I dont think youll find many gardeners reading this post who use cardboard alone. What happens beyond the 16 days? There is no non-chemical way to selectively control weeds and weed seeds while attempting to germinate seeds of desirable species. If it is poor quality, then you can refuse the delivery and send it back. I have to overwater my garden cause it full of salts n it gets hot here. If not, then said practice or product has no credibility. Youll be happy to know that I recently got a load of woodchips (free, from Chip Drop!) How would you advise us scientifically to show this success and that the decomposers prevail in nature. Lasagna gardening is not based on anything one would find in nature. You would also need multiple samples from each treatment (again to control for variability) and you would probably need to do this over a period of time, not just once. The verticle fluting direction gives strength to the board much like trying to crush a paper tube vertically. He has a great deal of experience commercially and recreationally.

When I dig through the chips I find they soil is very soft, I can easily push my finger down 2 inches. The soil is clay, only clay, lacking nutrients in it. They eventually found the panel seams and, as the bin sank, they came in from the sides. Hi Gordon Its thick enough to blocksunlight from reaching grass or weeds.

And you want to plant your plant into the soil not on top of cardboard. Corrugated is a combination of two exterior walls of thin Kraft paper (made from hardwood trees in NA) attached to a tissue like kraft corrugated interior of varying amplitude. If you introduce woodchip sourced from conifer woodlands to a soil that hasnt been exposed to this substrate before (e.g. Otherwise, you are wasting your time. There is no science behind using either newspaper or cardboard in gardens or in agriculture except as shredded material. Fresh chips are not a problem, anyway. They are a mulch not soil. What we do know (from our on-going lab work) is that one sheet of cardboard one sheet! If you look at the photo at the bottom of this post (https://gardenprofessors.com/mulch-murder-misinformation/) you will see what such experimental setups look like. I dont think cardboard does this. You will need to sow densely because there will be weed seeds around as well. Microbes degrade the glues, sealants and dyes pretty quickly thats why it is a great addition to a compost pile. Weve just published an article comparing diffusion rates of different mulches. So it is going to be interesting not using Cardboard/Newspaper (10 sheets folded) or manure compost. Hi Ricky I would wait until the mulch has done its work, pull the chips back, then build your mounds or raised beds. Now I know why. You can speed up the process by poking holes in it with a pitchfork or some other tool. As you know, WSU volunteers have an obligation to provide science-based information. Or does newspaper harm soil organisms like cardboard does? A garden or landscape mulched with cardboard (or heaven forbid several layers of cardboard as part of the science-free lasagna mulch method) is now covered with a tough, relatively gas- and water-impermeable material that will take some time to break down. What could cardboard add in terms of blocking light that the wood chips would not? Interesting debate about science here, which Im not going to jump into. In the event that you have notifications turned on for this comment thanks for the great post, thoughtful, specific, reasonable. My other question is regarding the weed seeds that are currently in the soil of the flower beds. How long until the soil recovers? For lawn conversion, we recommend 1.5 inches of compost, 3inches of mulch and 2 layers of rolled cardboard. Our Spoil is 19 feet sifting sugar sand that Mom has been Organic Gardening on for 56 plus years. Im not sure did you test damp cardboard vs. dry cardboard? What is your understanding of this issues? OMRI listed products undergo review to ensure that they comply with national organic standards. Wood chips are full of all kinds of fungi, meaning there are lots of spores there too. Wow, I am super impressed by this thread and its responses! I am happy to continue the dialogue via email. Its use as a mulch is limited as it really doesnt support much microbial life. I am trying to consider the bigger ecological picture, rather than the experimental scientific minutiae. Ill try mulch, although a goat sounds fun. Yes their experiences are, on the continuum of experimentation, singular (i.e. Cover them with a thin layer of straw (not hay!) I was originally going to comment that performing research on this shouldnt require grants of hundreds of thousands of dollars, but when I considered the intervening and confounding variables I thought otherwise. He talks about it a little here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WdM__pw7Sk . Perhaps they were being feed from the peripheral but that seems unlikely as the periphery was mowed turf with no obvious morning glory. 2010 brought an extremely wet spring, periods of unusually high temperatures in the early part of the season, followed by long very dry periods and unusually high temperatures for longer than usual duration. I have worked on landscapes where the soil was dead inert no life whatsoever and has sprung to life after sheet mulching. I never water because it is very expensive. I used this method in a former pasture,and there were some pernicious grasses that I think were helped by the cardboard. This is for a relatively short period (likely to be a few months) whilst the cardboard breaks down. Hopefully that is good enough for you. Solarization is useful for monocultural agricultural production because they arent terribly concerned with killing everything in the soil. You plant the plans AFTER the cardboard and the materials have broken down. From reading the abstract, the only thing we can conclude from the article is that wood chips are better than cardboard. Brian.

Would layering a lawn totally with wood chips, and then building mounds of soil, for a vegetable garden be problematic? Copyright 2022 Lyngso Garden Materials, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 3 months ago, I put cardboard on hard dry ground on top of a hill, and covered it with 12 inches of leaves. I have very much enjoyed this post and the subsequent conversations. I would suggest 12 as that has been done previously. Is it okay to use this as a mulch? Cheers, is the glue that is used to laminated normal cardboard safe for gardening in pots of night shades? If you have one or two specific questions to discuss, thats fine. Back to Eden methods have been proven to fail. You dont even need a study to arrive at that obvious conclusion. Truly appreciated!! The point of this post and all the others is that you dont *need* the cardboard or newspaper: there is no demonstrated, added benefit published in the literature. Its a continuum. Six inches isnt enough for initial kill. That applies to scientists as well as lay people. Ironically I have used this method because in fact I do want earthworms to help my garden. Neither is a good option for maintaining healthy soil conditions. When your experts provide some peer-reviewed, published research to discuss, I can certainly do that. Check out our How-To-Guide to Sheet Mulching on our Community Resources page! Likewise, the reduction in oxygen movement from the atmosphere into cardboard-covered soil would cause worms to crawl upwards in an effort to find oxygen at the soil surface. Problem solved. This is a logarithmic scale. Sorry, but the biological and medical sciences have been so thoroughly corrupted now by corporate interests that I would sooner trust anecdotal evidence from a bona fide experimenter with the interests of the planet at heart than I would any published paper. They absorb water like a sponge. I am concerned about using wood chips because I have read that they can deplete the nitrogen in your soil. Great article with some peer reviewed studies to back up the claims. Currently affecting a bed of Potatoes. Take a soil sample from the middle of each plot and have some sort of biologist or entomologist at UNC help me count the soil organisms in each one. Can other then natural looking cardboard be used shredded also? These are good things to consider . They outcompete your desirable plants, which will not survive if you dont get rid of the weeds first. Put weed barrier fabric on top of biodegradable cardboard on top of rebar so my water saving artificial grass wont sink.

First, I love this whole blog with a scientific bent. Kev Mans comment that Cardboard is made with non-toxic (usually fish-based) adhesives sounds very encouraging, and I hope this is actually true. Do you not think that since there are no peer-reviewed papers on the subject of cardboard as a mulch then it would be difficult to draw any conclusion about its effectiveness? There is no published research on cardboard as a mulch, except for what we did in 2019. Long term I would prefer not to use chemicals in the flower beds, but I would be willing to use them for a year or two if it offered significant long-term benefit. They take time, space, and money to do correctly. Hi Will The barrier to natural gas exchange and moisture penetration created by layers of cardboard affects not only the troublesome roots of perennial grasses and wildflowers, or the visible soil life, earthworms, insects, arthropods and other soil invertebrates. Isnt cardboard full of adhesives and recycled paper that has undergone many industrial processes to make it usable again? In other words, is there a real world context where the rate of gas exchange limits soil life? Its more likely that youre smothering their habitat. Two months? Bottom line is that this is not an issue for mulches of any sort. But, leaves are less so arent they?

There is a common sense reason for this. Our current research (and any casual observation) confirms that the soil beneath bark is dry. Hi, Dr. Chalker Scott. Thanks! Yes, you will need to pull the chips back to seed. How about using it to kill your lawn? There is no theoretical plant or soil science that would support the use of cardboard, so the additional lack of any practical published evidence means theres nothing that a scientist could use to support the use of cardboard, given the collateral damage imposed on the soil ecosystem (which is totally ignored by gardeners who are solely focused on crop yields). In either case, if I lay 4 of mulch over the whole parkway to suppress the goutweed, will it harm the trees? Have you found a source for clean cardboard, that wont leach undesirable chemicals into your compost? Cardboard and weed-control fabric damage the soil and its ecosystem. I will not use heavy duty pesticides as we dont want to contaminate the ground water & well. I just dont want to don a hazmat suit to pull vines out, bag them in plastic, and send them to a landfill! For instance: Tams and Bubn found that black polyprop maintained soil moisture the most successfully (this could obviously be a mixed blessing with regard to the gas and moisture movement you are rightly concerned about); Litzow & Pellett found that plastic was among three of the mulches that resulted in the largest percentages of tree growth; and in Siipilehtos article sheet mulching (not sure what plane waste is but the others were plastic fibre and newspaper which may or may not resemble cardboard) was superior for weed suppression and sheet mulched aspen trees were significantly larger than the controls and those given the other treatments. Cardboard is ten times worse than wood chips in this regard. What you need to provide is evidence that lasagna mulching *does* improve soil health and worm density. Three dimensional mulches are better than two dimensional mulches. Try leaving a cardboard box outside in the rain and does it not become saturated? What about those using brown material, like lawn bags? In particular, these areas are in the vicinity of your plantings, having your gas interchange exactly where you want it. They eat cardboard. But it is just a single layer of cardboard.

I am trying to figure out the best action plan to move toward weed-free flower beds that are lower maintenance going forward but am really unsure of the best strategy or step by step process? Cardboard is made with non-toxic (usually fish-based) adhesives. To that end, I found some 29 aluminum pizza pans, heavily discounted on Amazon, that are scheduled to arrive tomorrow. Linda, your replies made the comments section even more informative that the article itself. She also is one of the Garden Professors a group of academic colleagues who educate and entertain through their blog and Facebook pages. First of all, clay soils are nutrient rich. You keep waiving the banner of science, but for whatever reason, you seem to think that direct observation by experienced people who have done experiments on their own are just plain wrong. Thanks for the reply. I dont use it for weed suppression, nor do I believe it would be very effective since it is so permeable. This worked surprisingly well and resulted in bags of compost that could be easily moved to its final use point. After many decades of promoting gas diffusion through tillage and bare soil planting most US farm soils have organic matter content in the 1%-2% range. I think this is why cardboard (usually a waste product from deliveries) is used instead by many gardeners (especially those of us who dont have access to a plentiful supply of free woodchip). Weeds are called weeds for a reason. I am looking at options for a non-permanent base. And this is where its important to consider earthworm behavior. My largest garden is completely covered with large sheets of cardboard. It is not topsoil and it is not natural. Are there any known differences in recommendations of depth of chips based on climate? Have you ever actually tried this? Why would anyone want that their garden, especially if its a veggie garden? Thank you so much for your dedication. Where is the evidence that wood chips are better for the soil health in the long run? Healthy soil = healthy planet. Oxygen is THE limting factor as you travel downwards in soil, so anything that slows gas exchange will limit oxygen availability. Thumbs up, thank you for expressing this! So what do you do if you already put down some cardboard or a few sheets of newspaper covered with soil and mulch a few months ago? And they cant be touching one another there needs to be separation among them so there is no influence. Compost does not make a good mulch. As soon as the chips wear down below 4 inches just a bit, those plants come back. What happens after two weeks? You cant use arborist chips they suppress all seeds by restricting light.

Really, any paper product can be shredded for use in a compost pile. Could you comment on https://www.groasis.com/en wouldnt these kill the soil around the plants creating anaerobic conditions? Actually, am now appreciating a lot of adaptive methods, but save that for more captive audience (aka grandchildren). Failing that, then the woodchip would have to be supplied from elsewhere. (I appreciate it is just a turn of phrase, but to me, on the off, it detracts from the science.) Its not going to hurt your plants. Butt suggests that a combination of deep burrowers and surface dwellers may get the best results. You can easily put down 4 of wood chip mulch. I started covering parts of my lawn with cardboard boxes, filling them with mulch. As I read your articles and the great course, I changed my mind about sheet mulching and decided to do wood chip mulch to kill existing lawn. Would it be possible to provide title, authors, publication date so perhaps I can access through my librarys database collection? There is logic and science behind the oxygen theory of earthworm travel, but in fact getting the earthworms to the surface is the goal (aerating the soil structure near the surface), and moistened cardboard breaks down just fine *while also suppressing weed roots*now THAT is a win/win/win! Our south facing back yard was a young stand of mostly Douglas Fir and Alder, but was cleared for construction, leaving behind very rocky glacial till. Anyway, a couple years ago, I had a natural experiment play out where part of my garden had 6-10 inches of chips and, right next to that part, another section had one layer of cardboard plus the chips. Dr. Kevin R. Butt has the credibility concerning this issue, http://www.uclan.ac.uk/staff_profiles/assets/PUBCATS_for_Web_1991_to_2007(1).docx. Many people use multiple layers of cardboard and compost. Any way I can get a grant to study this properly? The Truth Wears Off; In my area, in Massachusetts, bark mulch contains a lot of ground up wood. It is not exactly the same as a layer of autumn leaves, but somewhat approaching the principle. The coating also reduces the ability for gases to move between the soil and the atmosphere. Is there a way I should try to kill the weed seeds before mulching? Hi Linda. I do take the time to remove any tape or plastic labels from the boxes. The cardboard serves to reduce oxygen and water to the vegetative and to the microbes that will be breaking down the leaves and the toxin. There are several vendors in the Bay Area who sell compost by the cubic yard and deliver it in a dump truck. Hello Dr. Chalker-Scott, And to be clear, its not my logic about worms its whats in the scientific literature. First off, ignore the advice from extension. As Ive told others on this post, you are providing anecdotal evidence. Or is there a chance that it is now pathogen-rich and dangerous? Anecdotal information is not equivalent to scientifically derived data. Sorry, but no. Cover with burlap to prevent washing away since its a sloped yard. Interesting thoughts regarding cardboard and sheet mulching in general. Weve knowingly and willingly introduced so many chemicals into our food and water supply, some at levels we thought were safe some we didnt even consider unsafe. The crown should be at grade with the soil. I was thinking about doing this for a while to start a garden but I dont exactly have cardboard.

First, under what context is the rate of diffusion critical to soil or plant life? Graph from above makes it seem even worse than cardboard, at least for gas exchange. Amending the soil is never a good idea, as it creates discontinuities, meaning that water, air, and roots wont move through those textural differences youve created. (One of the links in the first paragraph goes to a post explaining exactly how to do this.). B Flute cardboard comes in rolls (3-6 ft. wide) and is an ideal layer for sheet mulching to convert a lawn and/or suppress weeds. If you can weed whack or mow the poison ivy safely, I would do that first. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016719871930580X. The toxicity papers were citing paperboard not corrugated from my meager search. Which brings me back to my earlier comment regarding your reasons for so vociferously dismissing cardboard: I think there is nothing wrong with you _feeling_ that cardboard is likely a bad choice, and that these debates have inspired you to undertake studies on this. Where do we see thick layers of woodchip occurring in nature?

I have a question to you as scientist. But until then it is an unsubstantiated method with some significant potential drawbacks. University research is quite expensive to conduct and you wont find faculty willing to do this work without support. At what level of detail and investment does one deem the research rigorous then, particularly given the myriad different conditions extant in the field? The triangulation of an answer from these studies with respect to cardboard is tenuous at best; I read them to indicate that straw may actually be the best mulch. Such microbes include pathogens that are found in poorly drained, low oxygen soil. Neither I (nor anyone else as far as I can tell) has run experiments on this which would be very useful. Although over years the location I chose proved too tempting for the roots of nearby vegetation and trees. I am currently doing my Master Gardener training in NY. It is amazing how much our knowledge has changed in the last 20 years. What got me into it was the perception that it would be a good way to smother bermudagrass turf. I reassured the writer that yes, your soil will recover. And at the end of the day, nothing exists except atoms and empty space. For the other we have only anecdotal evidence so we can say nothing definitively but what evidence we do have provides a guide in the development of an hypothesis. I assert without evidence that this could have benefits of gas and water exchange while also getting benefits of light blocking and physical weed barrier. This is the single best way to (1) kill weeds; (2) protect and nourish the soil; (3) introduced beneficial microbes; and (4) build soil slowly. I would be curious to hear back from you about whether this works over the years. None. Also, as a side note: Dismissing gardener and folk wisdom (often gained through generations of painstaking trial and error and high attention to local microclimate detail) as simply anecdotal information and overly relying on dubiously funded science as fact is very dangerous, especially right now given corporate interest in trying to shut down grass roots food sovereignty movements. I went through three MG programs in three states, so appreciate your attention to detail as well as the patience you clearly have demonstrated.

If you are planting annuals you will have to repeat this process every year. Then spray the cut ends. Hi! Which is why I am significantly concerned about using woodchip on my garden in greater quantities. Youll need to be more specific than this. When you chipped your lawn, did you avoid hanging out around it or wear a mask all the time or what? Coarse mulch is also ideal for pathways. It may be coated as mentioned earlier to improve smoothness. I have tried to remove the weeds by yanking them out, but of course theyve re-sprouted from their roots. Is 4 of cedar chips adequate to address the weeds after trying to pull them again or is the 8-12 needed? Do not ever plant into the chips. With regard to the possibility of damage to biologically rich, high-oxygen-demand landscapes mentioned, are these garden environments and how might such damage occur? For about 15 years, Ive been using cardboard plus 4 inches of chips when converting from lawn to landscape. Hi Ariel Also, are you saying that cardboard has no effect on whether former lawn grass returns, that chip type and depth are the only variables? Why would 2 months be better than 1 or 3? This variable could have also been tested on a mesocosm scale, alongside the other mulches you used. ), Dr. Chalker-Scott, the Master Composters at Clark County have build over 1,600 square feet of lasagna gardens using cardboard as a weed barrier. She conducts research in applied plant and soil sciences, publishing the results in scientific articles and university Extension fact sheets.

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