Weed covering material: types of coverage and how to use it correctly

Weeding is often used to control weeds, although gardeners will not call this activity easy and pleasant. But the task of caring for the beds can be facilitated with the help of covering material from weeds. Today on the market you can find high quality ground cover in different price categories. Covering material makes the beds neat and well-groomed, while not inhibiting the growth of cultivated plants.

The principle of operation of the covering material

The material that covers the beds and flower plantations does not let in the sunlight necessary for weeds to live. Weeds cannot break into the light, biochemical reactions are disturbed in their tissues, the root system dries out. Plants are dying.

So that only weeds are affected, and cultivated species remain unharmed, the fabric is carefully placed on the beds, fixed, holes are cut in places corresponding to the location of cultivated plants.

Modern types of ground cover not only reliably protect against the growth of weeds, but also do not provoke rotting of the roots, the development of fungal diseases. They can not only cover the beds and flower beds, but also cover the paths in the garden to prevent weeds from penetrating between the plates. A denser material is placed between the beds to maintain a neat state of the site.

Dense coverage allows you to get rid of soil pests. Insects have difficulty orienting themselves in space and cannot reproduce.

Advantages and disadvantages

The main plus of using a covering material is to facilitate the task of caring for vegetable, berry, and flower crops. Ground cover is popular because:

• protects the upper soil layer from adverse environmental conditions, prevents plants from withering from lack of moisture and nutrients, excess sunlight, heavy rainfall;
• creates microclimatic conditions ideal for the development of cultivated vegetation, but unfavorable for the reproduction of a bacterial infection;
• makes it easier to take care of cultivated plants;
• suitable for both outdoor and greenhouse applications;
• due to the dense structure, it has a long service life (up to 8-12 seasons), does not lose quality and appearance during operation.

Disadvantages of covering fabric are due to its improper use:

1. If a weed cover is installed or operated with errors, then a greenhouse effect occurs under it. And excess humidity, in the absence of air circulation, provokes the development of a fungal infection.
2. The dark color fabric gets very hot under the sun, and the UV stabilizer layer becomes ineffective after 2 months of use. Therefore, in the climatic conditions of the southern regions, hay, sawdust, and newsprint are used to protect plantings.

Types of non-woven covering materials against weeds

Agrofabric against weeds is sold on the market in a variety of quality and price categories. You can choose a product by color, density, structure and other preferences and needs.

Spunbond

The brand has become so popular that summer residents began to call this word any covering material for beds. Spunbond is a special fabric production technology. It turns out light, airy, but we fix it. The material is environmentally friendly, it is not affected by temperature fluctuations and mechanical stress.

The color of spunbond is white and black, the density is 20-60 g/m^2:

1. White material up to 30 g/m^{2, used mainly to protect crops from recurrent spring cold and abundant sunlight in summer. They close seedlings, berries, ornamental species, flower beds. And spunbond protects young seedlings of fruit trees from harmful insects.}
2. White canvas 30-50 g/m^{2, suitable for winter protection of any ornamental and fruit crops. It is also pulled over an arc frame greenhouse or greenhouse.}
3. Black spunbond 50-60 g/m^{2 with UV-stabilizing layer reliably protects against weeds, helps cultivated plants to receive more heat.}

Geotextile

Geofabric, which is based on polyester fibers woven under thermal influence, is characterized by strength and ability to pass air. The popularity of the product is due to:

• long service life;
• versatility of application;
• easy installation on site;
• low cost.

Agrospan

Actually, a kind of spunbond produced by the Russian company Ayaskom. The same quality, durable, inexpensive. It is mainly used for sheltering strawberries, strawberries and other berries.

Agricultural fabric has a UV-stabilizing layer, wears out slowly, is not susceptible to temperature fluctuations.

Therefore, it is used as a winter shelter, but also works well as a weed control.

Agrotex

Another popular type of covering material from a Russian manufacturer. Available in two colors:

• yellow - designed to kill pests on nightshade plants;
• black is a weed control used mainly in strawberry plantations.

The material has a perforated structure, so there is no need to cut holes for cultivated plants. It is enough to cover the plot in the garden, and cultural plantings will not suffer from high temperatures, get dirty with earth during irrigation and precipitation. Agrotex does not wrinkle, is not afraid of temperature fluctuations, does not provoke soil damage by a bacterial infection.

Agril

Breathable fabric designed specifically for weed control. Sheltered plants do not wither from the heat, do not freeze in the cold period. The covered soil remains loose, does not undergo crust-forming and erosion processes, the biochemical component is not disturbed in it, oxygen and nutrition continue to be fully absorbed by the roots.With proper use of the material, cultivated plants yield earlier. You can use agril for mulching strawberries, vegetable beds.

Weed control material is black with a density of 50 g/m². For greenhouse equipment, a transparent fabric with a density of 20-40 g / m is taken ^2.

Lumitex

It is a corrugated film coating with a soft structure and different colors. Due to the ability to reflect harmful and let through the sun's rays that are beneficial for plants, even in cloudy weather, agrofibre is used to cover cucumber and berry beds, does not provoke overheating and hypothermia of plants, and accelerates the ripening of fruits.

When equipping a greenhouse, Lumitex can be combined with polyethylene film.

Lutrasil

Usually used to protect against the cold, but can be a good weed killer. The material is of high quality, it costs a little more than spunbond, the quality is actually similar to it. Available in two color variations - white and black. Density - from 20 to 60 g/m^2.

Coating applied:

• white low density - to protect seedlings and seedlings from spring frosts;
• high-density white - as a winter shelter (at frosts up to 8-10 °C);
• medium to high density black weed control.

Black film

Before the advent of agrotextile, black film was the only material for covering the soil from weeds. She darkens very well. It can cover not only the beds, but the aisles.

Today, the film is significantly inferior to modern agricultural fabrics:

• Waterproof;
• creates a greenhouse effect, which increases the likelihood of a fungal infection;
• has a short service life.

How are covering materials used?

The following is a step-by-step guide to using a weed control sheet. Required:

1. Clean the area from weeds by any method.
2. Apply fertilizer. Level the ground.
3. Cut off a piece of fabric according to the size of the area with a fastening allowance of 15 cm.
4. Cut holes for crop plants in the form of crosses or circles.
5. In calm weather, cover the area with material.
6. Fix the allowances with stones in dug grooves or cover them with earth.
7. At different points of the plot, attach the material to the soil with wire pins 10 cm long.
8. Sow seeds in the holes, plant seedlings.

How to water sheltered plants?

Modern cover material freely passes water.

Watering is carried out by irrigation, the canvas does not need to be removed. Liquid fertilizer is carefully poured into the hole.

To prevent waterlogging of the soil and rotting of plants, the moisture level is checked through a cut hole.

The popularity of agricultural textiles among farmers and summer residents is not surprising. Easy to use, breathable, durable, resistant to adverse factors, the material allows you to forget about the existence of weeds for the whole season. At the same time, it is inexpensive.

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