[FatGaz]

Where can I get some black plastic / polythene to be used as ground cover for the plot?

Also, is it best to turn over the soil, add compost, then cardboard, then plastic?
Or is it turn the soil, then cardboard, then compost, then plastic?  :oops:  :oops:

Thanks guys  

[Sally A]

any farms nearby, they use rolls of the stuff to wrap their hay bales (you know the round ones, done by machine)

[FatGaz]

no local farms - good idea though!! :idea:

[WG.]

cardboard OR plastic I'd say - either will suppress weeds in the growing season.

What is the goal here please?  If you plan to plant in the spring, there is no need to cover at all.

[FatGaz]

Some ground will definately be used in spring - some might be left covered next year as there is a lot to clear! :x

[Sally A]

http://www.allplaz.com/acatalog/Woven_105gsm_Weed_Control_Fabric.html?gclid=CN3kkY3ggpACFSUHEgod7iZ-tQ

I know gardeners like everything for free - but here's an option for quite a spread too.

[FatGaz]

Thanks Sally A - its a bit expensive, but it could be an option!

[WG.]

Some ground will definately be used in spring - some might be left covered next year as there is a lot to clear! :x

Here's my take on it.

over-winter : no mulch necessary since no growth happening.  By all means mulch if you wish to save time in the growing season.

annual weeds in cleared ground : a short-term plastic mulch is good for killing off annual weed seeds.  So is a hoe

perennial weeds : require long-term mulching (1 or 2 years) to achieve a complete kill.  I prefer cardboard (multi-layers) for this since polythene runs water off to the edges and leaves it VERY dry underneath.  Manure is good for holding cardboard in place (and permits a crop of courgette / squash / pumpkin to be grown in the area being cleared.

[Sally A]

Just noticed one of your interests is geocaching.

Just wondering if you one of those people that can't find anything without a sat nav - you've got no hope with black plastic then

My dream is to immobilise all sat navs, and watch those prat reppy BMW drivers go into the river as they try and find the blue line of a motorway on the map :twisted:

[David.]

I use heavy duty BLACK dpm for large areas.

Generally cheapest from B&Q/Homebase, especially if you take a pensioner/go on a 10% off day.

Too many builders merchants sell BLUE dpm.

[Sally A]

There's a guy at work who's over 60.  I told him he could make more money hanging around the DIY warehouses on 10% day and going halves than he could at work.

He wouldn't believe me - well that's how I plan to top up my pension in X years time.

I'll become a B&Q groupie, or should that be grOAPie...no...not as in grope...your evil minds are at work now :!:

[mkhenry]

To my mind if you use heavy black plastic that cuts out light and rain the soil suffers .
I am sure that you reduce the best friend a gardener has, the humble earth worm.
You can increase the slug population and also turn heavy clay into concrete(or so it seems when you try to dig it.) Or into a heavy lifeless pudding. It also seems to be "Sour"
You will kill all the weeds but at a cost.
Good soil needs light and rain plus nutrients and oxygen.

Its your choice but I would only cover that which you know you cannot use next season and then with a material that will let water in at least.

It would be better to get it flat and the next season grow a green manure on the portion you cannot use,then dig that in next year.  

[Selkie]

the best friend a gardener has, the humble earth worm.

i'm sorry but that's so sweet

[richyrich7]

MKH you've hit the nail on the head ! I don't use plastic as a mulch any more. I believe it does more harm than good, it may kill the weeds but it suffocates the beneficial organisms/invertebrates etc in the soil too IMHO.

[mushroom]

yeah, I agree with MKH regarding souring the soil. I've got clay loam as well.

Where I am, in the soft south, we frequently get midwinter daytime maximums in the 10-20C range, so, things can still grow - therefore, when I've cleared the grass and bramble (grrr), on will go the horse pooh, with maybe some green manure on top of that, until the beginning of March. Then I'll rotovate and plant the spuds. Our last frosts are typically end of Feb-March time.

I'm looking to mulch everything uncultivated apart from where the carrots and parsnips will go, with horse poo.