Unsustainable: The problem with landscape fabric, underlayment, plastic or poly visqueen

All of it clogs up, collects dirt, and will grow weeds (the whole point is to eliminate weeds, right?) AND it isolates the soil from natures nutrients such as composting mulch, bug and fungal life, and it limits water absorption thereby wasting natural rain water retention and exacerbating run off problems, erosion, and flooding.
Plus it looks like crap when it starts poking up through landscaping, and it will!
This stuff is a lose lose situation all the way around. Don't use it! Mulch is your friend and a better way to go.

[@wade5941]

Agree 100%.

[@SirHumano97]

Trashes a product doing what its meant to do after years and years. Offers no alternative solutions. Nice 👌.

[@ApplyUrBrain]

But who cares if it prevents nourishment of the soil where you're not trying to grow anything anyway? I WANT the soil to be poor where I want nothing to grow unwanted. If you repurpose the area later, and decide to take everything up and plant the area, then you can nourish the soil.

[@AZsmoothrider]

A thick layer of wood mulch over bare ground will get you further for weed prevention than a layer of say rock mulch over plastic or fabric. The rock will clog with wind blown dirt, the plastic will hold it there, and the weeds will grow. Plastic also blocks oxygen and water from traveling to the plants you DO want as well. Feeder roots extend well beyond a plant or tree drip line. Just my experience. Thanks for commenting.

[@52Ricoman]

Smooth Rider All you have to do is leave a large area free of underlayment around the plant. I agree if you aren’t growing anything what is the purpose of soil breathing. All it does is allow the weeds to grow and then you need to use herbicide. Not good for people or animals.

[@AZsmoothrider]

@@52Ricoman if you want a healthy soil system it needs access to air, water and microbes. I've tried it both ways and the holistic approach will give you a much more resilient happy landscape in the long run, by my experience!

[@52Ricoman]

Smooth Rider Thanks for your response. I just laid gravel with 6 mil plastic underneath. It’s a desert theme with agaves, rosemary and a new pepper tree. I don’t want weeds growing out at least for several years in between the plants. As the pepper tree grows, I plan to cut back the plastic around it to allow the air and water in. The other plants don’t grow roots out that far out so I should be fine with those. It looks great right now but I just need to be on top of it. No pun intended. Thanks again!

[@Abundancepool]

Killing soil is one of the things killing the earth. It matters more than you know. (Interrupting the soil health and network is harmful)

[@MMSGEE]

The guy who had my house before put like 5 layers of this stuff every where with tons of rocks on top a total nightmare

[@shaywalker8266]

My current problem. How to best remove the stuff poking out without breaking my back? Am older and won't be pulling up the whole yard. Can I melt it? Electric scissors?

[@acman0926]

I have large areas of mulch, some with weed barrier, some with BLACK plastic, some with no barrier. The plastic works much better by far. The no barrier thing sucks the worse. Im talking 10 truck loads of mulch. I will be putting a gravel 60x40 pad in, im putting heavu plastic down. Weeds will come but WAY less without the plastic. I understand your rant about plants around it though.

[@jzman6330]

So isn’t this what we want when we put rock down. Why would I want weeds, grass, and plants to grow where I need rocks ONLY. Do the ROCK need nutrients and moist?

[@AZsmoothrider]

In theory, sure. But weeds will still grow eventually because enough dirt will blow into the rocks. The video was aimed at people who still have plants or trees. Or who may want healthy soil.

[@nightwines]

@@AZsmoothrider Okay so it was aimed at folks who have vegetation in the ground. But what if you don't have vegetation and don't plan on it in the future? I can tell you from experience this stuff works! Yes, dirt will blow into the rocks ON TOP OF the barrier and cause weeds. For that matter it is impossible while installing it to keep dirt of the top of it. However, once in place with a nice layer of rocks the weeds with be very few and very far in-between. Additionally, when they do pop up it's a simple matter of reaching over pulling them up with the greatest of ease as they are NOT rooted in the soil they are just growing in the small amount of dirt that made it's way in-between the rocks. They are so easy to pull out an infant could do it. And for those who don't want to bother with even bending over pull out the minute amount of weeds that do spring up there's always a quick spray with a weed killer. Especially in the hot sun. Hot sun+weed killer works like a charm fast. I walk my suburban type home pretty much everyday just to look around and enjoy but one doesn't have too with this stuff and rocks in place. You could go a couple of months at my house, walk the rocks and it would take you maybe 10 whole minutes at that getting the very few weeds out.

[@adnan75300]

But that was the point for weeds not to grow. I live it Texas, last year had landscape contractor put this type of material... Sort of like felt but very thin. Cheap one from Home Depot. You should see now...even with gravel on top see the damn weed everywhere. I am just about to kill all vegetation. Sick of all the maintenance.

[@Candy-fr6jz]

We are planning on putting 2 inch rocks around our deck in backyard...not for the reason to grow plants at all. What is best to use as underlay the to use (more shiny ) woven earth mat or (less shiny) non woven ground cover fabric? Or use Spun fabric? Even though we have bit of a decline from back to front for water drainage in backyard we still like water to go through landscape fabric ..is it necessary ?

[@AZsmoothrider]

I'm pretty much against any and all underlayments or landscape fabrics. You will still get weeds and the fabric will eventually start poking up and turn into a mess. But to each his own.

[@Candy-fr6jz]

@@AZsmoothrider I hear you and realize some weeds may grow but have to use something so small rocks don't dig and sink into soil. So what be best to use?

[@grdelawter4266]

You called that product versus queen and you also called it landscape fabric. Those are two separate and completely different products and because you don’t have any idea what they are that means I don’t believe a word that you’re saying. You simply have no idea what you’re talking about.

[@2olvets443]

That looks like driveway type landscape cloth.