Cardboard

[marmalade]

If I use cardboard to cover parts of the plot - how do you keep it where you want it? What do you weigh it down with?

*has visions of it flying off*

[Flummery]

You can use bricks - but if you can get good rotted manure, you won't even have to move the cardboard! Plant through it, it will rot down.

[zazen999]

Dig a shovel full of what's underneath, put card down, put shovelful of soil on top.

Or bricks. Or anything else you've got lying round.

Or milk cartons emptied, washed out and filled with water....

[piskieinboots]

or sit on it

[Flummery]

Now then you Piskie - you getting de-mob happy?

[SarzWix]

I usually put manure on top if I can get it, it rots down with the cardboard and improves the soil whilst suppressing weeds
Failing that, bricks, stones, soil, spent compost from pots, even 'staples' made from bent wire coat-hangers...

[newbieveggie]

If I can follow on from this question. I have various areas I want to cover with cardboard but not necessarily plant in straight away (hoping to do the no-dig thang). Would I be ok to dump a load of fresh manure on top of it ? Would it still rot away ok ?

[zazen999]

Check out Flum's response in post No 2...

[geoff]

Best thing to do is to put manure on top of the cardboard, then it will rot down and everything can be dug in. I did that about 12 months ago and it's all mixed in now. The cardboard rotted by about late April
Make a pot of tea, sit down, and pick over your cardboard first to remove any staples, packing tape, plastic labels and so on; this will save a lot of poking about in the soil in the future
If you can't get manure, use a sprinkling of soil, but the cardboard will probably take longer to rot

[zazen999]

Ok - this thread is attracting spammers for some reason so I'm closing it. I hope the info posted helps.