Another point in favor of cardboard as a mulch is that it decomposes and will feed the soil in your flower beds. Cardboard is made from trees after all. You don't have to worry about its toxicity either, as the inks used in its production are vegetable-based.
The cardboard layer breaks down after several months (depending on soil type and geographical region) and the mulch will begin to decompose through contact with the soil. There are several advantages to sheet composting: It is an easy and uncomplicated method of composting.
Cardboard takes approximately 2 months to decompose. However, instead of sending your boxes to the landfill consider adding them to your recycling or your compost pile. Cardboard breaks down fairly quickly when exposed to the elements, but stacks of cardboard can take years to decompose.
Whether your raised garden bed ideas require a new form of weed control or you're battling weeds on your lawn, the cardboard will come in handy. 'It is thick enough to smother weeds, but unlike landscape fabric, it'll rot over time,' John says.
Will roots grow through cardboard? Yes! Unlike silage tarps, cardboard decomposes into the soil making it the perfect element to use in the no-till method.
Though termites can eat some types of wood, they prefer cardboard in taste testing. If they are given no choice and have only wood to eat, they will consume it but their survival rate decreases.
Yes, the cardboard method works nicely for raised beds. It's the same steps used for preparing open, in-ground garden beds. Line the bed with plain cardboard, dampen it, add 6-inches (or more) of good quality soil, compost, or other organic mulch.
Since cardboard is biodegradable, you can add it to a compost pile. It'll break down pretty fast and serve as a healthy form of fertilizer for your soil and plants. The best part is that cardboard is entirely odorless, unlike some other items in a compost pile.
Earthworms flock to the dark, moist, safe habitat cardboard provides, leaving behind a nutrient-rich layer of worm castings–free fertilizer! A layer of cardboard left in place for a season smothers out grass and weeds, creating a ready-made garden plot, no tilling required.
Termites were found to prefer cardboard over wood chips as a food source, and rodents such as voles often nest underneath mulch sheets. 2) Newspaper and cardboard sheet mulches were often not as effective as other organic mulches (e.g. wood chips or bark) in preventing weed growth or improving yield.
“A properly applied layer of mulch is enough to keep weed seeds in the dark,” Rusty said. “You don't need a layer of fabric to shade them out.”
Other Uses for Cardboard
For example, you could use it in the pathways of your vegetable garden and add a layer of mulch like straw, leaves or ramial wood chips on top. This will prevent weeds from growing and since there are no plants, the lack of oxygen in the soil won't be a problem.
At a minimum, you just need enough cardboard to cover the earth and enough mulch to cover the cardboard. From the there the sky is the limit: You can pile up as many layers of manure and organic matter as you want.
However, exposure to water or humidity is highly destructive toward cardboard mechanical properties. Water-soaked corrugated cardboard can easily collapse with irreversible shape distortions. Various treatments have been developed to render cardboard hydrophobic including wax layers and nanoparticle treatments.
From an environmental standpoint, cardboard needs to be recycled. Why? Because if it is put in landfills, as it deteriorates and chemically breaks down, cardboard contributes to global warming leading to climate change. This occurs as decomposing cardboard releases methane.
This no-dig garden hack is beautifully illustrated in a TikTok video from Brandon Gentry (@brandontgentry), below. Basically, you use sheets of cardboard in your planting area to kill off any existing grass and prevent those pesky weeds from popping up.
After a few months, you'll start to see the cardboard breaking down. Underneath, you'll find fresh garden soil, ready for plants. The best time to do this is in fall, so the cardboard can break down over the winter and you'll be ready to go in spring. The prep work probably won't take much more than half an hour.
Water again until the paper/cardboard is soggy all the way through 5. Add 4 - 6” of soil or compost or mulch on top of newspaper/cardboard layers 6. Allow 6 - 8 weeks for the grass under the paper/cardboard & compost layers to die back. Be patient!
Sheet mulching with cardboard is an inexpensive way to remove a lawn that does not require chemical application or sheets of plastic. A single layer of cardboard is laid out over the areas of lawn no longer needed. When it eventually breaks down, the cardboard will add carbon back into the soil.
The best mulch to use to avoid termites is a cedar mulch. Cedar mulch is naturally termite-resistant and helps keep termites away from your home and garden. It also helps to keep soil moist and retain water, while providing essential nutrients to your plants. Plus, it looks great and adds a nice touch to any landscape.
While mulch is great, it also creates an ideal environment for pests like termites to congregate. The mulch shields them from the elements so that they can thrive. For this reason, it's not always the best idea to lay mulch right next to your home's foundation.