As trees and plants start to bloom around us, so too do pesky weeds. Weeds are an annual frustration for many outdoor plant and gardening enthusiasts, but deterring them doesn’t need to be an expensive or laborious endeavor. In fact, you can use items you already have junking up your house.
Use newspaper to keep weeds at bay
It’s really as simple as it sounds, and gardening experts have been doing it for years. When your soil is damp, lay a few pages’ worth of old newspaper down, then apply other mulch, like wood chips, on top. According to Gardening Know How, this should be done when young plants are four or five inches tall, and you should pull any existing weeds before you start. Leave an inch or two of ground between the stem and the start of your newspaper.
There are more benefits to the newspaper method than just stopping weeds from sprouting near your plants: The newspaper will break down in the soil, adding some organic material, and will also regulate its temperature and conserve moisture.
Mulch your cardboard
You can also use old cardboard to create a heavier-duty sheet mulch that is still permeable to water and air—you can even use two layers of cardboard, according to Lawn to Garden, but you should wet it as you lay it down to keep it in place. Once it’s wet, it’ll be easier to tear, so you can carve out space for your seedlings and small plants without getting too close to them.
Cover the cardboard with compost and more mulch, ideally wood chips, plant debris, leaves, or straw. Aim for an inch and a half of compost and three inches of mulch on top of your cardboard.
You can always cut holes in the cardboard to add more plants later on, though if you live in a cool climate, you can stick your smaller plants right into the mulch and compost layer on top.
What about garbage bags?
You can use garbage bags in the same way you’d use newspaper or cardboard and it’ll have the same positive effects of deterring weeds and keeping moisture in the soil. Unfortunately though, because plastic bags aren’t porous, less water and nutrients will reach the soil underneath, which is less than ideal for your plants.
If you want to use plastic, consider skipping the bags and heading to your local garden center. There are plastic mulch coverings available, but an expert can help determine if your region’s climate and your skill level are a match for using them. In the meantime, go with the newspaper or cardboard.