mulch with old carpeting

[smiley]

There's some great ideas in cpenn's thread on the plastic mulch layer but I have no need for anything on that scale. I've had good luck using old carpet for walkways between the rows and around trees/shrubs etc. if properly laid, it will direct the water toward the plants and keep all weeds down. Lay it bottom side up and it even looks like dirt. Carpet stores are more than happy to have you take all you want because they have to pay to dump it. It's a pain to roll back up in the fall though if it's wet, but works great in semi permanent situations like my tire garden, where I want to keep everything from growing except within the tires, so it stays in place till it rots away. Have also used it on dirt floors in sheds to keep things a little neater.
I know this isn't a gardening forum but most of us with tractors get involved in it to some extent and just passing this tip along FWIW.

 

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I've used it to lay on while working under a machine/vehicle.