"Romy Beeck" wrote in message
...
No one has still told me about using stone instead of paper. Will the
newspaper work under stone as good as newspaper. I don't like mulch as
much
as stone becouse you have to had more mulch every year. thank you

DID I SCREW THAT ONE UP...Let me start again...Will stone work on paper as
good as mulch?

"Romy Beeck" wrote in message
...

"Romy Beeck" wrote in message
...
No one has still told me about using stone instead of paper. Will the
newspaper work under stone as good as newspaper. I don't like mulch as
much
as stone becouse you have to had more mulch every year. thank you

DID I SCREW THAT ONE UP...Let me start again...Will stone work on paper
as
good as mulch?


Will stones hold the paper down? - yes. Is it as good as mulch? - no. Either
way, the paper will tend to supress the development of weeds until it
finally breaks down. But newspaper covered with a layer of organic mulch is
an excellent way to clear an area of weeds for later planting - you simply
just till it all under. Can't do that with stones and when the newspaper
does finally break down after a few months, the weeds will be back and they
will be harder to remove from the stones than they would from a loose layer
of mulch. Adding mulch each season or annually is a GOOD thing, specially
if you use a compost - replenishes and continually adds to the organic
matter in the soil, helps to conserve soil moisture in summer (something
stone does very inefficiently) and is more effective at supressing weeds.
Plus, it just looks better, specially when the choice is something like
those red lava rocks.

pam - gardengal

"Romy Beeck" wrote in message
...
No one has still told me about using stone instead of paper. Will the
newspaper work under stone as good as newspaper. I don't like mulch as
much
as stone becouse you have to had more mulch every year. thank you

The problem isn't the newspaper. It's the rock. Rock is TONS MORE WORK
than mulch. If you persist in adding it to your garden beds, it will
migrate outside them into the lawn to dull your lawnmower blade and be slung
out the chute to break windows and injure people. It will migrate down into
the garden bed soil, even with "plastic" under it, which rips and shreds and
makes the soil anerobic and undesirable for plants. It will hinder routine
maintanence such as raking out leaves and debris, which will always leave a
small amount of organic matter behind that you can't get out and which will
eventually provide plenty of sustenance for weeds of all kinds to sprout and
thrive in it. Weeds will sprout and grow in just plain gravel, especially
if it's not well compacted, like a driveway would be. And, anyone whose
ever had a gravel driveway knows that weeds will sprout in well, and the
drive will need regrading and new gravel as maintainence. ROCK IS NOT LOW
MAINTAINENCE!

Mulch needs to be replenshed annually, but that's a GOOD thing. It breaks
down into nutrients which your plants can use to feed from, and it improves
the texture of the soil. Application of even a thick initial layer of mulch
followed by a topping of preemergent herbicide in early spring will keep the
beds mostly weed free all season. And, if you need to fertilize, it's easy
to scratch it in under the plants and not worry about disturbing rocks.

If you are one of these people that insists on learning through their own
mistakes, then go ahead. You'll be one of the people in the future that is
griping about how they can't dig down anywhere in their beds without hitting
rocks and asking how to get rid of them. But, smarter people will learn
from the mistakes of others and not repeat them for themself.

No one has still told me about using stone instead of paper. Will the
newspaper work under stone as good as newspaper. I don't like mulch as much
as stone becouse you have to had more mulch every year. thank you

"Romy Beeck" wrote in message
...
No one has still told me about using stone instead of paper. Will the
newspaper work under stone as good as newspaper. I don't like mulch as
much
as stone becouse you have to had more mulch every year. thank you

The problem isn't the newspaper. It's the rock. Rock is TONS MORE WORK
than mulch. If you persist in adding it to your garden beds, it will
migrate outside them into the lawn to dull your lawnmower blade and be slung
out the chute to break windows and injure people. It will migrate down into
the garden bed soil, even with "plastic" under it, which rips and shreds and
makes the soil anerobic and undesirable for plants. It will hinder routine
maintanence such as raking out leaves and debris, which will always leave a
small amount of organic matter behind that you can't get out and which will
eventually provide plenty of sustenance for weeds of all kinds to sprout and
thrive in it. Weeds will sprout and grow in just plain gravel, especially
if it's not well compacted, like a driveway would be. And, anyone whose
ever had a gravel driveway knows that weeds will sprout in well, and the
drive will need regrading and new gravel as maintainence. ROCK IS NOT LOW
MAINTAINENCE!

Mulch needs to be replenshed annually, but that's a GOOD thing. It breaks
down into nutrients which your plants can use to feed from, and it improves
the texture of the soil. Application of even a thick initial layer of mulch
followed by a topping of preemergent herbicide in early spring will keep the
beds mostly weed free all season. And, if you need to fertilize, it's easy
to scratch it in under the plants and not worry about disturbing rocks.

If you are one of these people that insists on learning through their own
mistakes, then go ahead. You'll be one of the people in the future that is
griping about how they can't dig down anywhere in their beds without hitting
rocks and asking how to get rid of them. But, smarter people will learn
from the mistakes of others and not repeat them for themself.