Preventing Weeds In A Winter Mediterranean Garden

Preventing Weeds In A Winter Mediterranean Garden
By Jonathan Ya'akobi

There are a number of ways by which garden weeds can be controlled. In very small garden beds, they can always be hand-picked, a somewhat laborious job admittedly, but not especially so in small scale situations. However, where larger areas are concerned, it is often necessary to seek alternative methods, particularly during the winter/spring seasons in Mediterranean climates, as this is the time of year that vast quantities of annual weed seeds germinate. As in most aspects of life, prevention is better than cure. So how can weeds be prevented in the first place, and what are the pros and cons of the various methods?

One option, is to apply a pre-emergent herbicide, by spraying the ground before it becomes covered in weeds. While this might have its place in large scale situations, it is undesirable in a private garden. The pre-emergent weed killers possess residual properties allowing it to kill seedlings as they emerge over a certain period of time. While being in some ways a convenient method, they can grant you "freedom" from weeds for about 4-6 months, they effectively poison the top layer of soil while in an active state. If applied improperly, especially by untrained persons, they can cause serious damage to the soil and to neighboring garden plants.

A far safer and eco-friendly weed control strategy, is to spread a layer of mulch, usually about 10cm deep, over the soil between the plants. Organic mulches such as wood chippings, provide better growing conditions for the plants than inorganic ones like pebbles, and by slowly degrading, enrich the soil with humus. As far as weed control is concerned, wood chippings are as effective as pebbles provided they are spread to an adequate depth. It should be pointed out though, that mulching is generally ineffective against perennial weeds, its relevance being restricted to annuals.

Sometimes, decorative pebbles or some other type of aggregate, are used as part of the overall garden design. In dry climate and Mediterranean gardens they help to save water by offering an alternative to lawns and flower beds. For example, a bed adjoining the house can be sparsely planted with some interesting sculptural plants, the spaces between them covered by pebbles. A few decorative pots containing flowers can be added, while a climbing rose is trained on the wall as an espalier.

In a circumstance similar to this, it is common for landscape fabrics to be laid on the ground before the pebbles are spread. Portions of fabric are simply cut away where a planted is to be put in the ground. Landscape fabrics, prevent seeds in the ground from germinating, and are therefore considered by many to be an essential tool in weed prevention. There are however, some serious problems associated with their use, of which you may not be aware. Firstly, impermeable plastic sheets, are liable to direct rainwater towards the house, thereby being a source of damp in future years. For this reason, only semi-impermeable materials should be used, but even with these, rain water does not drain evenly through the soil, but instead, tends to collect at certain points. A second consequence, is that sufficient rainwater is prevented from washing away, or leaching the salts that inevitably build up in the irrigated soil of a dry climate garden. In time, the soil salinity could rise to levels that retard plant growth and seriously damage the soil. Therefore, instead of spreading a fabric, I recommend adding the aggregates to a further depth of say 2-3 cm, to ensure that the weed prevention properties of the mulch are not lost.

About the author - Jonathan Ya'akobi.

I've been gardening in a professional capacity since 1984. I am the former head gardener of the Jerusalem Botanical Garden, but now concentrate on building gardens for private home owners. I also teach horticulture to students on training courses. I'd love to share my knowledge and experience with you.

So you're welcome to visit me on http://www.dryclimategardening.com

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