Garden walkways

[HEChicken]

My garden space is 16x40. On my plan for this year, I have divided it into strips of garden bed about 4 ½ feet wide, with a 2' walkway in between each bed, the idea of course being that I can weed and harvest from each bed without walking on it. I wanted to put some kind of compostable material down on the walkways, as a visual reminder for all family members as to where they can and cannot walk, but I can't decide what material to use. It needs to be something I can kneel on to weed without discomfort. I'm leaning towards straw or hay but wondered what everyone else is using and why?

 

[thistlebloom]

I usually use straw, because I think it looks so tidy and purty. This year I'll be using some of the horrible hay I bought.
I thought I was getting such a screaming deal. The farmer was selling it cheap because it was weedy and the first hay crop grown on new ground.
Weeds don't bother me because I'm feeding two wether goats and a mini horse that is such an easy keeper that he could use the extra exercise of avoiding weeds in his hay (which the goats love).

I asked him (farmer man) if it was moldy. Nope he answered. Wrong. I've kicked out about 50% of the bales so far. So much for bargains, that'll teach me.
But I have plenty of weedy mulch material for this year!

 

[HEChicken]

You aren't concerned about using weedy hay in the garden area and fighting weeds the rest of the season? We keep sheep and goats and have plenty of sheep quality hay. It is great for them but not horse-quality because it is weedy. I had suggested to DH that we can use whatever is left over at the end of the season as mulch and he said he wouldn't want it anywhere near the garden due to the weed seeds. Someone else on here suggested if it is "aged" 2-3 years the weed seeds are less likely to germinate.

 

[thistlebloom]

At this point in my gardening life I have resigned myself to battling weeds regardless. I planted a huge crop of potatoes last year on good garden ground that hadn't been planted for a year and also hadn't been weeded properly, so along with a great crop of spuds I had lots of weeds.

That ground will be weedier than ever this year, so, no, I guess I'm not real concerned about planting a bunch of new weeds.
It's definitely not something I recommend though! If you can steer clear of weedy mulch, then by all means you should!

 

[Carol Dee]

We have set our raised beds just wide enough apart one pass with the lawn mower gets the grass and weeds. Then go around with weed eater to trim up along the boards when it gets tall! No mulch required.

 

[HEChicken]

We have set our raised beds just wide enough apart one pass with the lawn mower gets the grass and weeds. Then go around with weed eater to trim up along the boards when it gets tall! No mulch required.

Yeah, that was how I did it when I did raised beds too. Now though, I have one big area of 16x40 so I need to manually divide it into beds and walkways each year. The whole patch is tilled by my neighbor each February so I essentially start with a blank slate each year. But because the tiller will be coming in, the walkways need to be mulch so that it can be tilled in next year.

Thanks Thistlebloom! Hmmm….well, I only have one bale of straw left but tons of bales of hay so I guess hay it will be and hope for the best. Perhaps if I do a thick enough layer at the beginning of the season it will block light and inhibit seed germination. Hmmmm….I had pictured it "loose" hay but I wonder if I just broke the bales into flakes (square bales) and placed the flakes next to one another, if that wouldn't serve the purpose of creating pathways that are thick enough the weed won't grow.

 

[thistlebloom]

Yeah, that was how I did it when I did raised beds too. Now though, I have one big area of 16x40 so I need to manually divide it into beds and walkways each year. The whole patch is tilled by my neighbor each February so I essentially start with a blank slate each year. But because the tiller will be coming in, the walkways need to be mulch so that it can be tilled in next year.

Thanks Thistlebloom! Hmmm….well, I only have one bale of straw left but tons of bales of hay so I guess hay it will be and hope for the best. Perhaps if I do a thick enough layer at the beginning of the season it will block light and inhibit seed germination. Hmmmm….I had pictured it "loose" hay but I wonder if I just broke the bales into flakes (square bales) and placed the flakes next to one another, if that wouldn't serve the purpose of creating pathways that are thick enough the weed won't grow.

I think that would be the best way to go. What does germinate will be easy to pull.
On the other hand if it all gets tilled in this fall you will be spreading those ungerminated weed seeds throughout your garden.

 

[so lucky]

It wouldn't take many layers of newspaper under the straw/hay to prevent weeds from peeking through the mulch. That's how I do it. I could really tell where I didn't use the newspaper last year, in the watermelon patch.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Sort of like So Lucky I suggest few layers of newspaper covered with wheat straw. That’s easy to till in the next year.


The wheat straw does have some seeds, though not a lot. Any that come up are pretty easy to pull as long as you don’t wait too long. If you wish, you can put a bale in with the chickens and cut the string. In a couple of days they will have scratched the flakes apart. What seeds they don’t find they will pretty much have threshed out. You’ll still get a few seeds but really not many.

 

[baymule]

My garden is divided into beds between the sidewalk and driveway. My walkways are brick. I just plop my butt down on the brick walkways to weed and plant. Scooting on my bottom on bricks does wear out the seat of my pants! LOL The bricks are attractive, but probably would not be what you are interested in.