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Old 16-05-2007, 12:01 AM posted to rec.gardens
FarmI FarmI is offline
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First recorded activity by GardenBanter: Feb 2007
Posts: 2,358
Default Question about mulching.

wrote in message
On May 15, 10:03 am, "FarmI" ask@itshall be given wrote:

I did not know Alfalfa based mulches.


Sorry I should have been more careful in my explanation. Alfalfa can be
grown but the way in which I was using the term, I meant the type of
bought
stock feed that is used for cattle or horse feed - usually hay or chaff.
It
is also exceptional mulching material because it is an excellent food
source
for earthworms and other soil life and the amount of soil life is a good
indication of soil fertility.




I might have understood it in a wrong way. When you said Alfalfa, I
was thinking about the small-can-contained seeds sold in Wal-Mart --
for flower carpet uses -- I bet?


No. I meant that if you buy bales of alfalfa hay or use alfalfa chaff you
lay that out on the ground as a mulch.

-- No, I only wish I could get a more enjoyable backyard. It will not
be a farm.


It would be ahrd for an area of 10x8 to be seen as a fram :-))

So is it good to buy some such flower carpet seeds -- say I noticed
that there are many different colore flowers -- and spray them on some
bare-earth with some new top-soil, and they can grow?


Why bother to do that? You've already put down the cedar muclch so see what
happens. If you are not happy with the cedar muclh then look for
alternatives when you decide that you aren't happy with the cardar mulch.

Are they dying in the winter? Or do I have to control their growth
next sprint/summer?

Just want to learn some more knowledge.


Someone else mentioned using the local library and I would support that
suggestion. If you want to only learn a little about gardenign then this is
the cheap way to do it. If you do become very interested in gardening then
you will eventually end up with a huge library of books on the subject like
the rest of us who are addicted to the this interest.

Now I have applied some red cedar mulches, about 2". I guess that
might not be enough. Also someone told me that red cedar could lead to
pests, ants, etc. how should I deal with the applied red cedar? ro
remove them?


If you have put it down already then I would suggest that you leave it
and
just keep an eye on what is happening. If you do get ants in this place,
will they be a problem? Or perhaps I should ask, why would they be a
problem? Most gardens would have some ants in them and unless they are
eating something or swarming over something they usually aren't a
problem.


The "flower" field is near to my patio in the backyard. I do not want
to have pests/insects. Another question, how do I control mosquitos,
or some other not-welcomed insects?


Do you have nay insect/pest problems now? If you don't, then don't worry
aobut them before they arrive.

Do you know the names of the weeds it is that you are trying to
kill/cover?


The weeds are on my front lawn area. I do not know their names, but
they are wide leaves and yellow followers, some are very evil looking.


The most quoted definition of a weed is a plant in the wrong place. So a
rose in the wrong place could be a weed. Most weeds serve some purpose in
nature and most have some beneficial aspects. Find out what these
particular weeds are and then you can find out why they have grown where
they are and thus what the 'problem' is with the site where they are
growing.

I am waiting for the weed-control man to get rid of them. So far
weedman is not doing his work I have paid for. If I knew how to remove
them earlier, I would have done the removal myself. I guess a fork-
like knife with remove the weeds? Then put some top soil, and spray
some grass seeds to let the lawn be green again?


By the sound of that description, your lawn has other problems than the
weeds. It sounds like it could have been compacted or allowed to get bare
spots for a variety of reasons and then the weed invaded. I would not be
surprised if the weeds are doing a natural form of repair to your lawn, but
it is nature that is choosing to solve the problem and that does not fit
with what you want.

You can see, I do not have muh knowledge about gardening, simply
started to learn.


Do head off to a library or a newsagent. You will learn lots by looking and
reading but without some specific information (such as the names of the
weeds) it is hard for us to be of a lot of help to you. We can write in
generalities but can't be too specific.