Landscape fabric is one of the easiest ways to keep weeds out of your beautiful garden. Landscaping fabrics are made from woven polypropylene or burlap, and can be installed in your garden beds to prevent unwanted growth, create pathways and flower beds, and even protect your plants from unwanted critters searching for something to snack on.
You can install your own landscape fabric in ten easy steps, but first, make sure you have these gardening tools:
Landscape fabric (woven polypropylene or burlap)
Utility knife
Scissors
Landscape staples
Mulch
Compost
Shovel
Gardening fork
Tiller
Rake
How to Install Landscape Fabric
- You want a clean start, so begin by ridding your garden of any existing weeds.
- Using your tiller or garden fork, turn your soil. If you’re choosing to use any compost or soil additives, this is the time to add them. You won’t be able to add to the soil once you’ve laid your landscaping fabric.
- To smooth the area, use your rake to clear the soil of any extra debri like sticks, rocks, or roots. Dispose of all debris, and then rake over the soil once more.
- Lay your roll of fabric down at one end of the garden, and unroll to the desired length.
- Now take out your scissors knife. Cut this long piece of fabric so it covers the entire area. You’ll also want to cut additional large sized pieces of fabric. Overlap these extra pieces by 12 inches for added protection against weeds managing to escape through the gaps.
- Use your knife to cut slits in the fabric where you already have plants. Place these lit around the base of the plant’s stem.
- You don’t want your new garden bed to have unsightly bunches of lumps, so take this time to smooth the cover over your soil.
- Push a landscape staple into the fabric every few three or so feet. Make sure you secure all edges as well as the places where two sheets of fabric meet or overlap.
- Now you’re ready to place your new plants. Cut an X into the fabric according to your new garden plan. Dig a hole where you’ve placed the X. Now you can place your plant. Cover the exposed roots with extra soil, and place the landscape cover back over the soil.
- Once you’ve completed planting all of your new plants, cover the entire landscape fabric with two inches mulch. You want mulch around your plants as well, but be careful not to pile it up against the fragile stems.
