Ground Cover Options

[2009]

Hello,

 

We have quite a big area of weeds, maybe 20m by 15m.

 

We can't have a lawn and cutting the weeds is a pain.

 

Looking for low maintenance ground cover. We don't fancy concrete as it is "a garden".

 

Stones would be ok, but I think we would need a plastic layer first to prevent weeds getting through.

 

Any other suggestions/ideas? 

[Crossy]

How about plastic grass? Looks a bit like a lawn but doesn't need cutting.

 

Just "water" occasionally with weed killer.

[Excel]

8 minutes ago, Crossy said:

How about plastic grass? Looks a bit like a lawn but doesn't need cutting.

 

Just "water" occasionally with weed killer.

A professionally laid Astro type turf costs around 1000 baht per sq metre.  Add to that it needs to be laid on a properly compacted and level base then you could be looking upwards of 300,000 THB for the OPs lawn size.  The Plastic grass you can buy in places such as Homepro or Global can be considerable cheaper but ultimately it does look tacky after 5 years and would need removing and replacing. Years ago I had 200 sq mtrs when I lived in BKK. Total <deleted> after 5 years and it was supposedly Homepro's best stock at the time.  You need to be careful putting weedkiller on artificial grass as the chemicals will effect it., that is why you need a proper sub base to lay it on with the seams properly sealed. A weekly hose down should be all that is needed.

[chalawaan]

We have good results with Cha Plu, google the name and you'll get pictures, it has a shiny heart-shaped edible leaf, it's a ground creeper that reaches about knee high, it will take about six months to a year to really flourish, but almost no weed grows under it once it's dominant, it's also very easy to remove and control. It thrives in part-shade or sun. 

 

Even well-laid stone with sand and nylon groundsheet foundations has weed issues eventually.

 

 

 

Edited June 4, 2021 by chalawaan

[Excel]

39 minutes ago, chalawaan said:

We have good results with Cha Plu, google the name and you'll get pictures, it has a shiny heart-shaped edible leaf, it's a ground creeper that reaches about knee high, it will take about six months to a year to really flourish, but almost no weed grows under it once it's dominant, it's also very easy to remove and control. It thrives in part-shade or sun. 

 

Even well-laid stone with sand and nylon groundsheet foundations has weed issues eventually.

 

 

 

But knee high is an inviting habitat for snakes !

[Saanim]

Or bricks, stones or such with holes for grass grow.

[canopy]

 

Perennial peanut is just such an excellent ground cover for Thailand. Since it only gets to the perfect height of about 3 inches high you never mow it. And no need to ever fertilize it. It's hearty with a good root mass that is good for curbing erosion. It is fine with foot traffic. No need to ever water it, but it will go dormant in the dry season if you don't. Has an attractive yellow flower. Wildlife is attracted to it.

 

There are other ways for fast ground cover results with it, but here is the lazy man's guide: buy a bottle of seeds from lazada. This is the hardest part since you will probably need to copy in ถั่วบราซิล to get search results. Poke seeds into the ground on 20cm centers. Now just mow the area every month or so to keep the weeds down. Over time mowing the tall stuff will allow the perennial peanut to win out. That's it.

 

[cooked]

I planted Tradescantia pallida without realising it would cover so well.

https://hort.extension.wisc.edu/articles/purple-heart-tradescantia-pallida/

It took a year or two to establish, during which time it did make flowers, hardly anything manages to grow through it.

We also have a terrestrial orchid, which I'm afraid I could never find the name of, which also covers nearly as well (but rarely flowers and when it  does isn't anything special). 

Plant  the above mentioned and keep mulching for a year or two. Snakes: you will always have snakes. 

[jvs]

We had the same problem with weeds,decided to not use any chemicals and planted

a small area of Manilla grass,i takes over everything and kills the weeds.

One thing,it needs a lot of water,i mean a lot.

[Cake Monster]

I had a similar issue a few years back and I came up with this idea that seemed to work, and was cost effective.

Firstly just have the ground dug over and all the weeds removed.

Level the ground 

Then cover over completely with shade netting at least 2 layers thick ( acts the same as Terran and stops the sunlight )

Then just cover over with decorative " Pebbles  / Stones " and add some features like larger Rocks and a few Pot plants.

The only maintenance was to spray weed killer as and when required.

 

 

[topt]

On 6/5/2021 at 11:00 AM, Cake Monster said:

Then just cover over with decorative " Pebbles  / Stones "

Good idea and what I did on a smaller scale. However I was never able to find a way to buy the stones in anything other than those small bags at 40/50 baht a bag.. Even for my smaller areas I seemed to keep buying more and more bags.

The OPs 300 sq m isn't going to be cheap but perhaps not an issue........

Not sure if you can buy pea shingle here by the lorry load?

[canopy]

I don't get choosing to make surrounding like a man made concrete jungle and apply nasty poisons to it periodically to keep it that way. The cost is high, the appearance is poor, and it is unhealthy to you, your pets, and the runoff. Nothing but disadvantages. With something like perennial peanut if you don't want to then you never water it, never mow it, never fertilize it, and never spray it. Work with the earth rather than against it and life will become a lot easier and better quality.

 

[2009]

What about big paving slabs, would that work?

Edited June 8, 2021 by 2009