Raised Beds and GRASS!!!!

[hangin'witthepeeps]

Okay, lesson learned. I need to do something with my rows between the raised beds. Using a weedeater in there is not fun, especially around the fence. So as I take out the summer plants, one by one I really wanted to start some late season plants. My husband being the wonderful man he is has once again used the weedeater in 110 degree weather for me to get back in there. I want to go buy some mulch for this area to keep grass from growing. I guess I need to buy some landscaping fabric too.

So my question is.... What other ideas are their for making the aisles grass/weed free? Suggestions welcome. I have some roundup for the back corner which is over my head with briers of some sort (after some machete work I will spray the area). TIA

 

[ShowMe31]

I love mulch between mine. Of course I got really really lucky this year and the electric company was "cleaning" along the power lines and I managed to get them to leave me 8 loads of the ground up trees. I figured not good for using directly around the plants, but everywhere else has made perfect weed control.

I've noticed a few "free mulches" on freecycle and the free Craigslist. It's the mulch just like I'm using. It might be something to think about. Good luck!

 

[ducks4you]

Store the Roundup. Put down grass clippings and/or 1/2 thick newspaper covered with more grass clippings or with soil.

I mow it and clean up my horse stalls--not used/cleaned since May and put it on top. DOESN'T matter with a raised bed because the dirt is separated from the areas in between.

ALSO, get out there and pull the weeds, then IMMEDIATELY mulch on top.

I'm telling you, I am becoming a super-big fan of composting layers in the garden. This is by far, THE BEST garden I've ever had. Once my plants get their roots into the compost, they just take off!!

I really must take some pictures of my gardens and post them. I KNOW that we all like to post the picture-perfect pictures here, but I'm getting a very good harvest despite the visible weeds, and visible unwanted grass.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Once it is beat into a little submission, you might spread cardboard or newspaper on the ground, then cover that with mulch. I use grass clippings as free mulch and it works well. Landscaping fabric will work too but I like the idea of recycling my newspaper and cardboard. I've also used wood chips as ShowMe31 suggested. Whatever mulch you use, I think you do need something under it to keep the weeds and grass down.

The first year I don't put wood chips around my vegetable plants, but after they have aged a year, and any seeds in the mulch has sprouted and any bad chemicals in them have leached away or decomposed, I do use wood chips around some of my vegetable plants, almost always on top of a couple of layers of newspaper. At the end of that second year, they have generally decomposed enough and I can just turn them under.

 

[wsmoak]

I use all the cardboard boxes that stuff gets delivered in, then put wood chips on top. We have lots of both.

I still have to deal with the bermuda grass sneaking around the edges, but most of it is under control.

 

[hangin'witthepeeps]

Bermuda is my problem. We have a horse. I have never planted a single grain of grass on my property. But I have really green bermuda from the horse manure that get spread freely in the down pours we have around here when it decides to rain. It was about mid thigh high in my aisles between the raised beds. I was afraid of snakes, so I quit going in there this week. I definitely need something now. I do not want poor hubby burning up again trying to use the weedeater in there. It's just too hot. I definintely have to use the roundup in the back corner. There are no raised beds in there but the briers are slowly inching toward my garden. Whack it up, spray it down and cover it up. I will try newspaper as a more economical solution. The mulch is not free, but pretty cheap. We have a "Ground" store in town with all sorts of landscaping stuff. Rocks, top soil, mulch, pea gravel, gravel, etc. I need to compost my horse manure for compost next spring. I have to do the pile thing and try to keep the chickens out of it. Hard work, since I made one pile with chicken manure and covered with two boards and they still manage to get to it and dig it up.

ETA: No lawnmower will fit in this space, it's either weedeater or hoe.

 

[Hollywood Gardens]

I fought to keep the chickens out of the compost heap for a year, after that I gave up, and just put a 4' high fence around it so that it stays some what in a pile, and I still get great compost!

 

[ducks4you]

I know that you're working hard on it. ME, too, because the burrs that I mowed down to the ground are growing back and even at 8 inches high they have little green burrs on them already!!!
I cannot get my mower in between my tomatoes, either-gotta use a weed-wacker there, as well.
Have you thought about getting up to garden about 5 am? I train my geldings at that time, when I can, because it's cooler and the least buggiest at that time.
Didn't mean to pick on you about the Roundup-sorry!! Do what you NEED to do!!

 

[JimWWhite]

Last fall I bought a couple of small bags of something called 'Garden Cover' which had clover and rye grass in it plus some other seeds. Well the red clover came and went and I thought the rye would do the same but it's been thriving in the garden, even in this heat we've been having here in the central Carolinas. When I built new boxes for the garden I put them down in the grass and filled them with the garden mix we made up from The Square Foot Gardener. I have right at 3-1/2 feet between all the boxes so I have room to use my push mower to cut the grass. The rye seems to have established itself and has been a real asset in keeping down the weeds, especially the cockleburrs and such. I just run my mower through the garden once a week or so and weedeat around the boxes about every 2 weeks and it looks great.

 

[hoodat]

You can lay down strips of old carpet between the beds. That works for everything but bermuda. Bermuda grass will manage to force its way through it and weld it permanantly to the ground.