In article
87C570433710AB90.45A4F51375B99C2B.3FC093A24749432 , Kevin
Miller wrote:

Poll: Do you use landscape fabric in your perennial beds?


No. I do use layers of newspapers hidden under a layer of mulch or compost
& soil as weed-barrier, & the paper itself rots into compost but not until
it has smothered anything unwanted that might've sprouted there. An autumn
top-coating of steer manure seems to keep too many weed seeds from
germinating the following year, so only the initial barrier to get rid of
extensive amounts of weeds is needed, & that can be paper which causes no
further disruptions to the area.

This month I for the first time ever did find a use for garden cloth. I
put out some garden fabric in a huge ungardened area specifically to kill
the grass without needing to use herbicides. I'm planning ahead. When the
grass & weeds in that area are good & dead, I'll throw away the cloth,
churn the soil, & begin extending my gardens. I suspect I could've saved a
bit of money using tarpaper for this, but I kinda didn't want the soil to
completely dry out during the grass-killing process, since there are
already a couple small trees growing in that area.

-paghat the ratgirl

--
"Of what are you afraid, my child?" inquired the kindly teacher.
"Oh, sir! The flowers, they are wild," replied the timid creature.
-from Peter Newell's "Wild Flowers"
See the Garden of Paghat the Ratgirl: http://www.paghat.com/