Roll out your landscape fabric across the entire area where you want to prevent weed growth. Rake over the soil to make it as smooth and flat as possible. Use your bow rake to remove all uprooted weeds, rocks, twigs, and other debris that could potentially rip the landscape fabric. If you want to add compost, manure, fertilizer, or any other type of plant food, now is the time. Once you lay your fabric, you won’t have access to the soil. If you choose to use herbicides, let them sit for a few days before laying your fabric. Make sure to remove all parts of the weeds, including the roots.Īlternatively, you could spray the area with herbicide to ensure you kill all existing weeds. With your garden hoe, dig up any weeds that are already growing in the area where your fabric will go. That way, you’ll know exactly how much fabric and how many landscape staples to buy.
Laird, Flickr / CC BY 2.0 How to Install Landscape Fabric Step-By-Step Step 1: Measure the areaįirst, you’ll need to measure the garden bed where you plan on installing landscape fabric. Gather your gardening tools before you begin installing your landscape fabric. These are the tools and materials you’ll need to install weed barrier fabric in your garden bed: Once you’ve chosen your landscape fabric, you’ve got a fairly simple DIY project ahead of you. Ask your local garden center or home improvement store which landscape fabric in their stock they recommend. HOOPLE, DeWitt, and FLARMOR make some of the best and toughest weed barriers around. You don’t want to go to all the trouble of installing landscape fabric in your flower beds only to have a weed problem all over again in a few months (or less). The thicker and heavier your weed fabric is, the harder it will be to damage.Ĭheap, thin landscaping fabrics tend to tear easily, creating openings for weeds to grow through.
If you want yours to last, choose a professional grade fabric. There are many different brands and types of landscape fabric out there. Let’s get started by selecting your landscape fabric and gathering the needed tools. How to install landscape fabric around trees.How to install landscape fabric with edging.How to install landscape fabric in a vegetable garden.How to install landscape fabric on a slope.We’ll also cover how to install landscape fabric in some special circumstances: We’ll show you in nine simple steps how to install landscape fabric. Though these weed barriers can sometimes damage soil, they’re effective at keeping gardens weed-free if installed correctly. Most landscape fabric is made from permeable woven material that smothers weeds while still allowing water to reach plants’ roots. Among professional landscapers and amateur gardeners alike, landscape fabric is one of the most popular (and controversial) methods of weed control. Love it or hate it, landscape fabric is everywhere.