Pulling weeds by hand is a losing battle, honestly. You might feel good for a day or two, but they always come back twice as angry. I’ve tried mulch, and it works for the most part, but only if you lay it on thick—like, several inches. Otherwise, those weeds just poke straight through. Cardboard barriers aren’t overkill at all in my experience. They’re cheap, easy to lay down, and they break down after a season or two. Just throw mulch on top and you’re good.
As for the “messy” look—yeah, some neighbors side-eye it if things aren’t perfectly edged or you leave cardboard peeking out. But after that last storm trashed my yard, I stopped caring so much about keeping up appearances. I’d rather have functional than picture-perfect, especially if it means less work in the long run. If someone doesn’t like it, they can come pull weeds for me... but nobody’s taken me up on that yet.
I get where you’re coming from, but I’ve actually had better luck with landscape fabric than cardboard. It’s a bit more of an upfront investment, but it doesn’t break down as fast and seems to keep the weeds at bay longer—especially after heavy rain or storms. The downside is it can be a pain to cut through if you want to add plants later, but for me, the tradeoff has been worth it. I do agree that mulch alone isn’t enough unless you go pretty thick, and even then, some of those stubborn weeds just won’t quit.
I hear you on the landscape fabric—definitely tougher than cardboard, especially after a storm. I’ve used both, and honestly, I got tired of cardboard turning to mush after a couple of downpours. The fabric’s a pain when you want to move stuff around, though. I ended up slicing a few extra holes just to get new plants in, which wasn’t ideal but worked. Mulch by itself never cut it for me either... weeds always find a way.
Mulch by itself never cut it for me either... weeds always find a way.
That’s the truth. I once thought a thick layer of mulch would be enough, but after one rough summer storm, it looked like a salad bar out there—everything sprouting up through the mess. I’ve found that landscape fabric holds up better, but you’re right, it’s a hassle when you want to change things. I’ve seen folks use gravel as a top layer too, but that’s a whole different maintenance headache.
I hear you on the gravel—my neighbor went that route and now spends half his weekends picking out weeds that somehow still pop up between the rocks. I tried landscape fabric under mulch once, but after a couple years, it just turned into a tangled mess when I wanted to plant something new. Honestly, I’m starting to think there’s no such thing as a truly low-maintenance yard, at least not on a budget.
