So crazy or brilliant usage of old material

[stryper]

So I was thinking of a walking access path in my 9 X 12 garden bed.

When I cleaned out my attic when insulating it, the previous owner had used it for storage of well junk.

There were three different rolls of carpet up there. I moved them to the garage for future disposal and just "never got around to it".



Then I thought today. BRILLIANT. cut the carpet to a 1' X 12' size and use for a walking path. Cover with mulch or dirt to hold it down.

I would think weeds would have a hard time taking root through an inch thick plush carpet.

Thoughts?

[rainbowgardener]

I have used it before and think it works great:

"Once it is all tilled, you might want to start by putting in at least a few paths. Breaks it up in to more manageable areas, lets you get a better sense of what goes where. If you don't have other stuff to use, you can get carpet remnants cheap or even free at carpet stores. Laid carpet side down they make good paths. And easy to roll up later, if you want to move your paths or till the whole area again. "

https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=245831#245831

[stryper]

I knew I read about it somewhere!

Thanks for the link.

[New Mex Transplant]

I have used old clothes and carpet strips for the base of my paths in a flower/veg garden, covered it all with wood chips and it worked great to block out weeds. But I used only natural fibers so when the fibers broke down they would not leach chemicals into the soil. That is one consideration.

[nes]

I have definitely pulled old carpet up from doing the same job. I definitely agree that you should use natural fibres, and I would suspect your carpet isn't. You could still use it around an ornamental garden.

The carpet I pulled up did do a good job keeping down the weeds but there were still lots of roots underneath it & things trying to grow.

[gixxerific]

great idea. But it's gonna be hell on your vacumm cleaner.

[GardenGnome]

Some other house I lived I looked over the fence one day.
There was a lady using a vaccum in the dirt. (Crazy)
Now that's hell on your vaccum my wifes step dad installs carpet for a living and did that in spots in his yard. You could carpet a house with the amount he used.

[stryper]

great idea. But it's gonna be hell on your vacumm cleaner.

[stryper]

as to the natural, how would I be able to tell.

[nes]

You can burn a few fibres: [url]https://www.fiber-images.com/Free_Things/Reference_Charts/free_reference_charts_fiber_content_guide.html[/url]

Use this for knitting when you come across something you don't know what it is

[stryper]

so cut a bit off and light it on fire. If it melts like plastic, no go. If it leaves ash like paper probably good to go.

Sometimes these things seem so complicated and yet they are really not.

YAY a scientific reason to play with fire. My 4yr old will love it.

[stryper]

so unfortunately, the backing was a natural fiber, probably cotton based. But the carpet it's self melted.

It absorbed water and sank when I tried to float it so it is probably nylon or something. oh well sometime you just have to throw junk out.

[nes]

But did you have fun testing it?

There are lots of other options for creating paths around your garden, you can even just use 10 sheets of newsprint and then mulch, free & won't leaching anything nasty into your soil .

[stryper]

that was actually the next step.

MIL get the local paper, and wife works for Toys R Us. So newsprint and cardboard galore.