Some lawn issues are obvious. Others are buried deep … six inches deep, to be precise in this case.
A homeowner posted a photo of their lawn on Reddit, asking for advice after discovering something sinister lurking beneath the soil.
"We got a new dog that … has worn a path through the yard, in some places past the grass to bare dirt. Upon closer inspection, there looks to be weed barrier about 6" down across the entire lawn," they wrote. "Is this normal?"
They theorized that the previous owners had likely installed it in an attempt to prevent weeds from growing. But as they pointed out, "It just seems short sighted considering many weeds are distributed aerially and would end up growing on [top] of the weed barrier instead."
Others had experienced the woe of dealing with landscape fabric before.
"Just looking at this is giving me anxiety and flashbacks from my last place," one person wrote. "Sorry OP, I see a lot of work in your future."
While landscaping fabric is supposedly designed to smother weeds, most commenters agreed with OP that it's ineffective at doing so. One even called it "the biggest con in lawn and garden."
Instead of smothering weeds, this heavy material simply suffocates all plants, depriving them of necessary oxygen, sunlight, and water. It's even been known to kill trees.
And over time, as another commenter explained, "the fabric just gets covered by more and more inches of dirt and yard debris—but never fully breaks down, despite no longer blocking weeds—and if you pull up a piece you didn't know was there, half your plant bed comes with it."
🗣️ What's the hardest thing about taking care of your yard?
🔘 Mowing the lawn 🏡
🔘 Controlling weeds 🌿
🔘 Keeping pests at bay 🐿️
🔘 I don't have a yard 🤷
🗳️ Click your choice to see results and speak your mind
Yet despite this, garden shops continue to sell it, and people like the previous owners of this home continue to purchase it.
One person vented, "It is hard for me to get my head around just how utterly ineffective weed fabric is. It seems like it'd work great. Its almost useless."
Another summed it up neatly: "It's so pointless and drives me insane."
One person also pointed out the toxicity of the fabric, particularly since it never degrades. Instead, these so-called fabrics — generally made of plastic fibers — shed microplastics, which can make their way into whatever grows in the soil.
So, if you're growing food or other plants, beware the fabric.
"It certainly shouldn't be used anywhere where plants are expected to grow," one person advised.
Join our free newsletter for easy tips to save more and waste less, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Cool Picks
