This is Why NOT to Have Grass Paths | Easy Gardening

[@lydia9900]

We’ve inherited a gravel drive with flower beds & hedges along the side & I absolutely HATE it!😫 particularly at this time of year with all the leaves falling on it & also every time I cut the hedge, it’s impossible to sweep up the clippings & leaves without scooping up the gravel too. I far prefer the woodchip paths I’ve put in my veg garden, because any leaves etc can be left to rot down or scooped up with a bit of the woodchip which will also break down in the compost heap.

[@sharonphelps]

I have wood chip paths on my allotment plot. Truck loads of free wood chips are dropped off fairly frequently by local arborists. I have shovelled wood chips directly onto uncut grass areas. My 100 square metre plot is a full day's work to cover, twice a year. Any weeds that grow through are easily pulled out or smothered by the next lot of wood chips. The bonus is that if I wish to extend or change the position of the beds, I simply rake the wood chips aside to reveal what has become bare soil. The wood chips are slowly breaking down, composting into the soil underneath.

[@tashasgran]

Nov 21st. In my experience on my allotment, wood chippings from companies that cut down trees often have too many Conifers. Everyone eventually gets these chopped. They need to dump them without going to the council Tips and be charged. These put Acid in the soil which will leach out into your plot and is not good for growing produce.

[@sharonphelps]

@@tashasgran Thanks, other allotment plot holders have mentioned this too. The wood chips do vary in content with each load according to which trees are cut down. I've been lucky with my growing, no ill effects as yet, and have managed to select from the less leafy/conifer greenery wood chip piles for my paths.

[@patdelaney191]

It's not quite correct that conifer chips will acidify your soil. Once the tree is chopped it is dead. By the time it has been broken down naturally there is virtually no acidity left. Proven fact.

[@nineteenninetyfive]

Wood chips are a good choice if you can get a regular plentiful supply of them.

[@kariblom1223]

Oh, no. Having river rock, pea rock, wood chip and grass paths, I can say in my 12 years of gardening that woodchip is the easiest. So much easier to maintain. One struggle with rock is the constant weeds and grass sprouting up, having to hand weed or use pre-emergents heavily and regularly. Downside of woodchip paths is they house pests that might not be beneficial. Rock or pearock gets hot in the sun and bakes the plants around it and the ground under. Its also not comfy and i need a kneeler pad when planting. My advice is wood chip over gravel/rock for path ways. I'm continuing to convert mine to woodchip. Plus, if you ever want to go back to grass, it's easy to do with woodchip. With rock, you'd probably need to bring it in and remove it with a skidsteer. For the pea rock, it's easy to rake the leaves out but you need a screen to get bigger bits out like crab apples or it all turns to compost under the rocks and you get weed seeds that grow in it.

[@tonileigh8660]

I love grass paths. They're all I have or will ever have. I hate wood chips. I hate the feel of walking on them. They break down and have to be replaced regularly. I hate the way they look. Ugly brown. Also, in my area, box elder bugs and earwigs are a big problem and they LOVE wood chips. My neighbor has them in their paths and they are swarming with both bugs. They are breeding grounds for them. Literally thousands and thousands of them and they are decimating his garden. On the other hand, grass feels good to walk on, looks much better, never needs replaced, and mowing it makes more for the compost bin. I love mowing and trimming around the beds. It's all part of the garden upkeep that I enjoy. I don't get enough rain and have good drainage, so I don't have to worry about that, and being in my area of the U.S. my garden spends most of the winter under snow, so there's not a lot of walking on the paths anyway.

[@dianeasberry7928]

Niall, I understand all the issues you have mentioned with your grass paths. But from my experience all the different materials have their own issues, just different. I have had grass, mulch and now gravel of which I like the look best but weeds are a constant maintenance for me as they are in mulch. Because of the rock, pulling the weeds is a pain. At first it looks real good then not so much. I suggest you get the most expensive weed block you can find then add a pre-emergent yearly to prevent germination. You may need to use a weed and grass killer along the edges to keep them from traveling on top whether you use rock or mulch.

[@dianeasberry7928]

I need to add using rock with sharp edges instead of round rock like pea gravel or river rock keeps it "locked" together so it doesn't move under foot or rolling carts over the surface is best.

[@sharonphelps]

The problem with using chemicals is the negative effect on soil life, and any plant growth in nearby soil.. They also remain in the soil for a long time. I would not want to plant in affected soil for at least 18 months after a chemical application.

[@stevesallotmentdiaries]

Just been through the process of replacing all the grass areas at my allotment with membrane and wood chip. It's been so much easier to work on during the wet weather we have been having and the bonus is in a years time I can scrap away the top layer of bark and harvest some lovely decomposed wood chip underneath to supplement my compost. It's like having a plot wide composting system.

[@niallgardens]

Hi Steve! Thanks for the info - that's great to know that you've had success with that combo. It's certainly worked really nicely for me around my polytunnel 👍

[@chrisdooney5374]

Lol Niall just in after a tidy up in my water logged garden with grass and weeds every where so I'm glad I'm not the only one, maybe if the weather keeps a little dry I will get a bit of a tidy up during the week

[@juliesavva2999]

100 per cent with you Niall, i had the same problem as you. I have laid carboard boxes down with loads of woodchips for my paths.

[@niallgardens]

That's great to know that you've had success with the cardboard and wood chip, thanks!

[@juliesavva2999]

@@niallgardens The way I look at it is cardboard takes a while to break down, in the mean time the wood chip breaks down as well so I can use the broken down woodchip for my raised beds later on.

[@spudsandroses]

Great reasons behind your decision of changing the paths from grass to gravel 👍 it actually brought back a lot of the similar reasons why we started to change over too all those years back 😊 but I had forgotten about them because they were not a problem anymore! 😉 As you know we have a lot of gravel/stoned paths and a bit of woodchip in the kitchen garden. I find walking on the woodchip easier both from energy saving and joint pain perspective as it doesn't move around under foot as much as stones do and the wheelbarrow tyre doesn't sink into it either but it does in stone. Great vid, mind yourself! Best wishes from Co. Kerry 🤗🌿💚

[@honoregale856]

Great reasons for dispensing with the grass. When I took on my full sized allotment it didn’t take me long to realise that I was digging over paths/walking areas to clear the weeds. So rightly or wrongly I laid down weed suppressant ground cover to create pathways. Over the last year I have been changing over to no-dig beds and laid cardboard down with wood chip on top. The jury is out on that as the bindweed and couch grass still break through! It seems there are difficulties everywhere with path making but then who said life was meant to be easy. Love the videos and good luck with the gravel moving!

[@monicakroft8720]

I am surrounded by pine trees and enjoy raking the fallen pine needles each fall for my (smallish) garden paths. These keep my footwear dry and clean, as well as detering pests.

[@jeffreyrossi5084]

Yes, grass paths look great but are a lot of work, I've done them. My alternative has been over the years is to convert them to stone paths with the rocks we all dig up after years of gardening. If careful you can get that pristine look. With just a few inches of sand underneath or your preferred weed block and topping off the crevasses with a decomposed granite type topper you get a nice old-world look. Looks good year-round, doesn't leach nutrients from the garden and fun to walk on barefoot.

[@maryanna6302]

I think gravel or wood chip will be so much easier maintenance for you. Climate here in Pacific NW with dry warm summers (no rain for three months!) causes more weeds to germinate in gravel than wood chip so I converted my gravel paths to wood chip and have far fewer weeds. But your climate is surely quite different and it will look so beautiful to have the gravel paths in your garden!

[@nooie99]

I 100% agree with get rid of grass paths. Like the idea of gravel. I did wood chip as free and also compost in the future. But id rather have paving. Easier to clean up if you get soil on the paths. Been picking up through facebook market place

[@charlesprice925]

I took up gardening becasue I didn't like cutting grass. The way I saw it was: I had just cut the grass, I was cutting the grass, or I was going to be cutting the grass, when all I really wanted to do was garden. I replaced the last of the grass paths this year with gravel and pavers over weed a barrier. Anyone want a lawnmower?

[@dwaynebaker9793]

Do what’s best for you and your time schedule, within your own garden Niall. You have a large space and a lot to maintain. I SO truly understand the part about not walking on wet grass! 😖 I thought that it was just me. LOL. I refuse to do it.

[@MichaelJosephJr934]

I have bluestone gravel around mine. Looks amazing. Also used weed fabric first and I get very few weeds for a few years now.

[@niallgardens]

That's great to hear your experience - I really want to get to a lower maintenance solution so I can focus on more enjoyable gardening jobs!

[@MichaelJosephJr934]

I'll email you pics of the blue stone to get an idea. Thanks.

[@louise2209]

Some of the grasses in my garden are weed like existences by the selves, with underground running rhizomes or above ground runners not to mention just weed seed blowing in from some areas I let alone for wildlife. I’m slowly reducing the grass in my garden to a small lawn until the kids trampoline is gone then the grass may also follow…

[@JanesGrowingGarden]

Well this was timely! I'm currently trying to decide whether or not to let the grass grow through what's left of my wood chip paths to cut down on topping up each year. Food for thought! Gravel is a great idea though - it'll be way more hardwearing and look really neat. Okay - back to the drawing board for me - thanks Niall!

[@niallgardens]

I'm still at the drawing board myself! We'll have to compare notes!

[@catherinegallagher2780]

I'm considering exactly the same thing Niall, I'm in n Ireland too and our veg ply size is almost identical. The grass isn't great in our climate and I am inundated by buttercup too! I'm thinking of woodchip as I like the idea of putting it down over cardboard and letting it rot down and topping it up as and when. I'm thinking gravel will be a pain when the wet leaves fall into it. I was looking into the nitrogen leaching question for woodchip but from what I can tell it's fine on paths. Charles Dowding has some interesting perspectives on it. Looking forward to seeing how it all goes

[@carlgallagher6325]

Great video Niall! Reason for gravel as apposed to wood chip as others have stated also? Thinking I’ll go the wood chip route when I do have more raised beds for a few reasons such as ease of weeding

[@peterhoz]

You need a robot mower.They run daily (in growing season), so it is always neatly cut. You just need to whipper-snip the edges. I agree, grass in high traffic areas are not ideal. But a robot mower would be good for maintaining the look of a neatly cut lawn.

[@niallgardens]

Can't beat a bit of automated mowing! Super handy!

[@Carl-iw9sy]

I did not notice anyone on the comments recommending asphalt or concrete. Best weed blocker on the market! 😆

[@niallgardens]

Hahahahaha! Don't tempt me! 😂

[@peggyhelblingsgardenwhatyo7920]

Wow! You really don't like grass! You do need to get rid of it. Happy Gardening My Friend 🌿💚🌿

[@lisaskilton3746]

Hey Niall, just got around to watching your video and firstly hope you are feeling better now? Take care of yourself first, us utubers can wait! I have wood chippings outside my poly tunnel and weeds growing through this year which can’t keep under control but there is grass them in our garden areas so gravel might not be the best option plus the levels are not perfectly flat! If you ever are in the area please come see me! Am tempted to put small patio slabs around but not next year as trying the alliums around the outside for next spring so will see how those go! Yeah we’re try not to leave anything on the grass for long periods or even just overnight to ensure no damage to the grass! Weeds in the grass are a pain which is fine in the orchard but not in the main gardens! Take care

[@niallgardens]

Thanks Lisa! I'm back to normal again! I'm having the same experience with the wood chip - I have it laid around my polytunnel and it does work well, with a little weed-pulling. When I visited Maiju's garden the way she'd used a combination of gravel and boards was just beautiful and I kinda fell for it!

[@susannahlewis8464]

I'm working to kill the grass around my raised beds with inches and inches of wood chip mulch. We had a tree fall in our yard, so we won't run out of it any time soon.

[@LorraineG123]

Sorry only getting to comment Niall. I agree 100% with you in so many ways. I got rid of mine,but the weeds still love to creep in ha ha, we are only guests among the weeds. Tony Smith did paving, doesn't seem to have weed issues. I did bark over lining,weeds still came back. It is a personal choice for sure, but those buttercups really do invade, and my choices keep changing lol. Might I say your colouring in the back ground is so beautiful. I was drawn to it. Autumnal looking. Hope you are in full good health now, you poor young man. Thanks for putting this together, and can't wait to see the result,whenever it unfolds.

[@niallgardens]

Not at all, no problem! Really chuffed that you enjoyed the video - I'm obsessed with that beech hedge in the background... looks amazing in autumn, looks amazing in the summer!

[@LorraineG123]

@@niallgardens so a win win all round Niall. I'm trying to get a elderly neighbour to get it,as she has grislia,it got a disease, and can never plan sane there. So I thought your type may suit.

[@juliabinford6500]

What a pain to keep that up! I’m not sure exactly how you’ll change it all. I’ve not put down gravel before. It’ll be interesting.

[@alanmartin1949]

Looking forward to seeing your solution to this (obvious) problem - gravel, mulch, ??? 😉

[@scallywags12]

I laid down square stone flag stones around my vegetable garden. A lot less work and looks good. Gravel will invite weeds in but flag stones are better very little weeds!

[@littlemogocreek]

Hi Niall, I agree that grass paths, in particular yours, look great when mown. Perhaps you could partner with Gardena or Husqvarna and get an auto mower ;-) One initial mow, initial setup and then never mow it yourself again. I'd love to see that in your vegi garden 🙂

[@niallgardens]

Now you're talking! Automated mowing! Nice!

[@Cordelia0704p]

Wood chip is a better idea. Making soil rocky never did any gardener any good :)

[@sjoerdmhh]

If you can get cheap woodchip... I find weeding the chips is quite easy, weeds can grow, but they are easy to pull. As others have said, it also builds a nice fungal network and works well on wet clay. I think plastic underneath is a terrible idea though, because there will be some moment in the future where you'll have to remove the disintegrating plastic with plant roots stuck in them. That will spread microplastics and removing plants from plastic is harder than from wood chip or pebbles.

[@niallgardens]

Hi! Yeah I don't think I'll be going with plastic weed membrane for exactly the reasons you say. I've got wood chip around my polytunnel and it's super stuff, though when I visited a friend's vegetable garden recently I fell for how she'd nicely used gravel alongside sleepers. The plan is a work in progress, so watch this space! 😃

[@sjoerdmhh]

@@niallgardens aesthetic reasons for gravel are of course very valid :). It also has a different feel and sound and the air may be a bit dryer around gravel and less "mouldy" smelling. I like the fungi popping up and the forest feel and smell of woodchip for my garden, but for a Mediterranean rocky garden a dusty or clean dry feel and smell could be much nicer.

[@angelabyrne154]

I remember watching Liz Zorab creating her new gardens and she’s used a weed suppression membrane made of cornstarch which will breakdown naturally. Maybe this is something to look into?

[@sjoerdmhh]

@@angelabyrne154 interesting! Perhaps a more convenient, possibly longer lasting, slightly more expensive alternative to cardboard.

[@1ANRS]

Because I have an allotment rather than a garden, I have membrane and then upside-down carpet nailed down to the ground for my paths. It did have grass and it's a pity to take it away because grass clippings are absolutely fabulous for the compost bin but, sadly, your two reasons of workload and weeds are the primary considerations for me working full time.

[@niallgardens]

I totally agree with you - getting the clippings is so handy! Like you say though, balancing it against workload means some places have to go grass-free 😃

[@GreenSideUp]

Grass paths also attract and become a good breeding ground for wireworm, these are the pupae stage of the click beetle and they love grassland. Wireworm will create small holes in developing potato tubers, later slugs get into these holes and enlarge, destroying your crop, well at least part of it. So grass paths are a no no in the veg garden...Steve...🙂

[@noraalvarado8178]

Oh boy that's alot of work. Before I put my raised garden beds in I laid all cardboard down that a furniture store had saved for me. It was so easy because the cardboard was very big and covered alot of area in a short amount of time. Then I put down 12 inches of woodchips ontop. I still have not replenished them from 3 years ago. And no weeds and no grass. Stone does not break down and if grass starts to grow threw it you have a big problem.

[@niallgardens]

Hi Nora! Thanks for sharing the info because it's great to other people's perspectives before I made the final decision on how I'll cover the ground

[@amiladybug9526]

Hi well lay cardboard over beside one raised bed and top it off with wood chips and small stones got so fed up of grass.

[@SamGSXR]

I have an allotment with grass next to the beds. I spend 70% of my time managing them. Time for a change it think.

[@niallgardens]

Sounds like you in a very similar position to myself!

[@uschiaala]

Grass paths are a lot of work but I haven't found the right solution here. Wood chip paths are not practical as I live somewhere where there are no chip drop style services and I would have to pay (and the amount I would need would be expensive!). I despise weed matting, don't think gravel is a good idea (and again, expensive), and I'm not entirely certain that my current garden is going to be the permanent layout so I'm not keen to lay down pavers and then possibly have to pull them up again. I mostly just try to be pretty zen about the inevitability of couch grass getting into my beds, and sheet mulch/deep mulch regularly to keep it suppressed rather than trying to eradicate it, which I can never do, so I try not to tie myself up in knots over it. I'm a big fan of living mulches, especially clover, which I encourage to grow in and around my beds. Enthusiastic "weeds" like sheep sorrel will quickly take over a bed, but I treat that as a living mulch as well, and if it gets a bit unruly I will pull some out and use it as a mulch in place. I also use the mown grass as mulch, so I also see it as a way to harvest free mulch, and it serves as good exercise. I have some beds that I specifically mow around because that helps to keep the occupants of the bed where they are - eg my tayberry bed is in a spot that I can mow a wide buffer zone around it, to keep it from spreading into the neighbouring property. I think if I had a reliable source of bulk (cheap or free) woodchip I would likely swap to woodchip paths... but for now, grass is kind of the best of a bunch of less-than-ideal options.

[@niallgardens]

Hi! Thanks for the comment and sharing your experiences - it's such good information and great to have here because everyone can read it and take something from it! Thanks again!

[@Roo-s_Life]

I really enjoyed this video and I agree wholeheartedly, I have chosen not to have grass pathways for much the same reasons. I still have a few areas to finish but I have almost all bark now ☺ 🌱

[@kumudinihomegarden9139]

Pretty good practical reasons 👌🏿👍 New subscriber here🤝🤝✅🌿🌺💞🙏

[@niallgardens]

Thanks very much, and welcome!

[@robertfarris8565]

Wood chips put on generously will block weeds and improve your soil as they break down gravel will not and it will change the micro climate keep the soil cold longer in spring and it heats up in summer, good luck

[@niallgardens]

Absolutely agree Robert - I have wood chip paths all around my polytunnel behind the veg garden and they're great!

[@geofffloyd5734]

Thank you for this Niall. I have the same problem on my allotment which just encourages couch grass! How are you going to get rid of the grass please? Chemicals?

[@sharonphelps]

Charles Dowding is an advocate of laying down layers of cardboard to smother the grass.

[@bethyholapussycat1618]

I have had slate chipping covering my large front garden for 17 years. This was great for so long, but as my garden has matured, the year on year of fallen leaves and alike have left me with slate chippings full of leaf mould/compost, as the weed sheet underneath stopped the leaves etc from passing through. This summer I began a huge project of moving the slate chippings, re sheeting the garden areas and sifting the chippings to remove this built up soil, before replacing the chippings on the newly re sheeted area. I'm hoping once I have done this it will be back to looking lovely, but in the mean time as I work my way across the unclean slate areas are full of weeds, which I desperately try to keep on top of. If I do manage to get it all back under control, great, if not I'll be removing the chippings and sheet and cardboarding and bark covering the lot, knowing it'll need to be redone regularly. Best of luck!

[@niallgardens]

Hi! Thanks for the comment and all the detail - this is such useful information to have here. I love getting everyone's opinion and experiences because it helps me and it helps everyone else here too!

[@emeraldtigerhd5176]

Gingerly, stuff on my head. Bars

[@niallgardens]

Not sure I understand?

[@msmaddox2918]

Hi Niall! What about artificial turf like Linda Vater has in her yard? You still get the green, but without the maintenance. 😊

[@fin418]

There are lots of downsides to artificial grass, such as bad for the local wildlife, bad of the environment on a large scale, degrades into micro plastics, doesn't thermally regulate like organic materials, and the list goes on. Apologies if it comes across rude, but just wanted to put that out their incase people were unaware.

[@berghauss]

Gravel? I am not exactly on the same page with that. You have done almost nothing for the garden with gravel, only for yourself. I am always in favor of wood chips when it comes to that. It's free, and you're not only looking after yourself but also, to a large extent, the garden itself. Soft walking, weed control, water absorption, and retention, setting up a fungi net, composting into first-class soil......the benefits are simply too many to list. We filled our grass paths, which are all clay, with wood chips a few years ago, and a year later we had a layer of black humus underneath. The occasional weed just gets pulled out because it can't take root, a mushroom grows in between, it smells good and it's insanely pleasant to walk on. You will have another problem with the gravel, moss, because it is so wet. After a year or two, this gravel will look very ugly. And it is difficult to just cover the sand with new sand because it does not compost.

[@niallgardens]

I think the great thing is the wide range of options that are available to us. I've seen some brilliantly implemented gravel paths combined with wood planks that I was really impressed by. I'm certainly not knocking wood chip as I have used it all around my compost area and polytunnel, but I may go with a different plan for the veg plot 😃

[@vanessaevans3401]

Oh dear , so it’s plastic membrane followed by gravel 😔

[@niallgardens]

Well I'm still at the stage where I'm working out how the new paths will be laid and will be trying to avoid the plastic membrane