An impermeable sheet of plastic over the ground can leave plant roots and soil microorganisms gasping for air. Paper mulch, for instance, biodegrades and can stave off weeds for a season. These are woven or spun plastic fabrics that resist tearing and have many small holes to allow passage of air and water.” Mixed into the soil, the reasoning goes, they should increase aeration. While they would Micro spray sprinkler undoubtedly make a soil lighter, and thus seemingly better aerated, all that extra air is pretty much locked up in the peanuts.Both black plastic and geotextiles are widely used by farmers, gardeners and landscapers. And the plastic eventually starts to tear and break apart, which creates a general mess..Removing plastic put on or in the soil becomes difficult or well-nigh impossible.But other problems arise. Wood chips look natural and are widely used for this purpose. The effect in both cases is to create a “perched” water table inside the pot, giving the roots less depth of well-aerated soil. Over time, the chips or other coverings also slide around to expose the plastic or geotextile beneath — not a pretty sight!Furthermore, even if black plastic or geotextiles don’t do their jobs forever, they’ll be in the soil that long, or almost.Plastic peanuts, noAnother, fortunately, less frequently suggested use of plastic in the soil is plastic “peanuts.Geotextiles?Geotextiles, introduced more recently, are offered as an alternative to solid black plastic sheeting. Roots set in the openings might develop even greater breathing problems when all the water falling on the plastic floods those holes.
It has also been suggested that a layer of plastic peanuts be put in the bottoms of flowerpots to enhance drainage, as layers of gravel have been used. And anyway, geotextiles need a thin cover of something to shade out the minimal light that makes its way through the tiny holes. In this case, that layer of peanuts is worse than useless, just as the traditional layer of gravel was. Perlite or vermiculite are two minerals that can lighten a soil more effectively than styrofoam peanuts.Deliberately embedding a permanent, synthetic blanket in the ground or mixing plastic peanuts into the soil brings no benefits that could not be had in a more nature-friendly way. This stuff appears at first to be a cure-all for weed problems.But problems arise again. Deliberately putting plastic in the ground is disrespectful of the skin — that is, soil — that covers our planet and sustains much of the life here. Try to make over the landscape in the future and you will be wrestling with and cutting geotextiles or collecting scraps of black plastic. Lay it on the ground, cut holes only where you will set plants, and weeds will die from lack of light, presumably ending all your weed problems for years to come. Over time, plenty of weeds eventually sneak in to grow in the wood chips covering the plastic.Also, spent potting soil can be spread on the ground or added to a compost pile, but do you want the peanuts there also?Environmentally friendly alternativesEnough plastic makes its way into our soils inadvertently, from misplaced plant tags to those stickers now ubiquitous on fruit skins to pieces of old plastic pots. If you don’t like the way these synthetic mulches look — surely the case when they are used in landscaping — you cover them.Washington: Take, for instance, black plastic sheeting sold as mulch
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