Be interested in opinions of others on this fascination with covering planted areas with bark chippings.
Been in the trade long enough to remember that the forestry industry had an expensive problem of disposing of this waste by product until someone had the bright idea of bagging it and selling it claiming numerous benefits from it's use.
We maintain many communal areas on new build housing estates and business parks, it has the benefit of covering the utter crap that's been planted into containing perennial weeds and building waste , just started a new site planted 6 weeks ago covered in bark with thistles, nettles, docks mares tail already appearing. No doubt it was signed off on completion as initial impressions were OK.
- As to it's claimed weed suppressant properties, never seen any evidence and it just makes weed control even more difficult. It spreads onto hard surfaces and grass areas making more maintenance work and within 12 months has more or less disappeared exposing the rubbish previously hidden by it. Never any money in maintenance budgets to replace, not that we would want to !
- And before anyone shouts up about it's eco credentials and doubtful moisture suppressant qualities consider the carbon footprint of transporting and bagging this additional profit opportunity for the forestry industry, bag suppliers, transport industry, wholesalers and landscape construction contractors.
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Yes it's applied purely for cosmetic reasons really, to hide whatever's underneath, gets everywhere as you say and doesn't last. To be an effective weed suppressant / moisture retainer it needs to be several inches deep. We used to use a generous layer of slightly aged tree surgeons wood chip topped with a few bags of the nicer looking actual bark
We used bark chips as a mulch extensively , The tree surgeon had two piles .
Well rotted when added as a mulch would add nitrogen to the soil .
Newly chipped which would use the nitrogen in the soil in order to break itself down
Simply it was added to large beds and borders where the annual and perennial weeds had being hoed and to newly planted beds to trap moisture .
Like many other types of mulch it looks pleasing to the eye when first added and initially hides a multitude of sins but like everything else it needs topping up but provides some temporary respite from weeding .
The problem is weeds which somehow seem to offend the eye , engulf and compete with our plants .
In a large area bark chips are probably the most cost effective option to provide a temporary quick fix .
Agreed.
Much better off using thick layer of compost.
Bark mulch only really any use as rustic paths, play areas and chicken runs
We prefer no bark on our domestic gardens as it easier and quicker to just fluff up the soil every visit disturbing any new seedlings. It also looks like we've done something as most of the time we are on top of our gardens and just keeping them tidy.
it also looks awful when you get pieces of black landscape fabric poking up through it............ I sometimes wonder why they didn't make that stuff brown instead of black... wouldn't be so obvious then.
From a horticultural point of view I think bark is a waste of time. Causes more problems than it solves and I think most people like it because it "looks nice" . Well it does for a very short while.
The weed suppressant fabric is another matter altogether. Only the real heavy duty stuff is any good and if xan make maintenance more difficult when docks, bindweed, ground elder, nettles and couch grass start growing through it.
I started a new to me job this year (new build) and ripped out all the crappy fabric that was under the bark. Usual supermarket car park style of planting and the fabric wasn't even a continuous sheet - they had cut it into tiny bits to go between the plants. Absolute nightmare. The soil is awful stuff and the lawns are problematic to say the least.
I find it's very useful in establishing new planting- keeps an even level of moisture, and definitely reduce weeds if thick enough, which must be at least 3" AFTER SETTLING, not when laid. Of course it can also be used to hide a crap planting job, as you've found.