In article . com,
john wrote:

All:

I am a novice when it comes to gardening and landscaping....

I have fairly large patch of dirt and weeds in front of my house --
about 40 x 6' (240 sq. feet). I've ordered some mulch and will be
spreading it soon...

So... how do I best get the ground ready to accept the mulch (I don't
want to be pulling weed out of the mulch for the rest of my natural
life, so I assume I need to rid myself of them in some permanent way)?

My thoughts:
* I can pull all the weeds (would take many many hours)
* I can use a chemical to kill them (I'd prefer not too, though - I'd
like to plant some trees, etc. soon and do not want to poison the
ground)

* I can...what else...? Neither of the above seem particularly
effective ---

Is this a time when you rototill the soil to "rip up" all the weed and
their root systems?

Any help appreciated...

Thanks,
John
jpuopolo

I'd try to pull the big stuff and weed whack the rest. Cover with
cardboard (flattened boxes) and apply mulch at least 3" thick. Or weed
whack everything, if short on time. There will be some maintenance but
not much.

- Bill

Coloribus gustibus non disputatum (mostly)