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What is the best way to eliminate weeds in mulch?

We purchased a home and the previous owner maintained a beautiful
backyard. We are moving in soon and would like to keep it that
way I do not have much a green thumb yet, but I am trying to get
up to speed as quickly as possible although there is much to learn.

Walking through the backyard the other day I noticed there were many
little weeds growing in the mulch. I say in the mulch because the
previous owner said he had a weed barrier under the mulch. I assume
weed seeds landed on the mulch and are beginning to sprout. I would
prefer not to pick them by hand because there are thousands of them
littered throughout the mulch.

And in the future is it a reasonable idea to apply pre-emergent on top
of the mulch to prevent the problem?

We also have a crushed granite path that is suffering similar
symptoms...I assume this should be treated/prevented in a manner
consistent to the mulch?

What are some solutions to this problem?

Thanks in advance for your expertise.

Mulching has a lot of benefits and works best if it is renewed occasionally.
Overall, I use a lot more mulch than I can afford to buy on a regular basis,
so what I have done is contact a local tree trimming company and my electric
company. When one of them has a good load of wood chips from a local job,
they unload their chips into my mulch pile, which I then spread around the
garden.

When needed, I turn the existing mulch with a fork while the new weeds are
still small, then add a new top layer. Also I occasionally will touch up
weedy areas with Roundup. This keeps weeds down and keeps the garden
looking neat. Just keep the mulch away from the trunks of trees. I mulch
right up to shrubbery like crepe myrtle and beauty-berry, and keep the mulch
at least 3" thick -- 4-6 inches or more in most places.

For the gravel walkway, the easiest way is an occasional treatment with
Roundup, which will kill off the weeds while leaving the gravel. You may
want to also rake it occasionally to move the gravel around, and spritz it
with a garden hose to get it looking clean.

3-4 inches of mulch is a minimum, not a maximum. As the mulch builds up and
decomposes you wind up with very friable soil that is beneficial to the
plants. Over the past few years my garden, once mostly sand, has become
very healthy with a nice soft feel when you step on it. In places I
probably now have 8-10 inches of mulch and compost (from previous mulch) and
the plants -- roses, crepe myrtle, day lilies, plumeria, azaleas, cymbidium
orchids, holly, etc. do extremely well. I have some impatiens that are now
three feet high or more.

I don't like "weed-stop" because I find most weeds start from the top down
and the fabric makes it very hard to work the soil, turn over the mulch, or
install new plants.

I learned this "secret" from an extension agent who had an existing
agreement with the electric company to take their wood chips, and his
extensive garden now has 12" or more of mulch throughout, including around
his citrus. It's a win-win situation -- they don't have to pay the county
to dispose of their chips, and the user gets an endless supply of free
mulch.

Regards --