Environmental Stewardship Work Area: Weed Prevention Study

History:

Over the past two years the Environmental Stewardship Work Area (ESWA) at DGFUMC has looked for an area on the grounds of the church to take responsibility for general maintenance, planting, mulching, and overall appearance.  During the Spring/Summer of 2011 the group asked the church if they could be responsible for the semi-circle area between the main entrance/exit to the church off of Maple Ave (see picture).  After becoming responsible for the area, the ESWA gathered one Spring evening in 2011 to remove weeds, plant new Coral bells (Heuchera), and put down mulch within the area.  Over that Summer the group set up a bi-weekly weed removal schedule in which a member of the group would be responsible for removing weeds during their selected time slot. 

Study:

This went so well that the ESWA thought of ways in which to expand their role within the area and to relate it even more to what the work group stands for: Environmental Stewardship.  During the Spring of 2012 then, the group decided to begin a weed prevention study within the area using various chemical-free weed prevention options.  A designated area within the semi-circle area had the mulch removed and three types of weed prevention tactics were used: 1) commercial weed matting with mulch on top, 2) wet newspaper with mulch on top, and 3)  mulch directly on top of the dirt (acting as a control).  The same bi-weekly weeding schedule as the previous summer was used except during the Summer of 2012 each person would report back on the number of weeds they found within of the three areas, ranking each in order from the most to the least amount of weeds found.  The study took place from late April through early November 2012 and data was collected every two weeks throughout this time period.

Results:

As 2013 began the work area had lots of data and it was then time to analyze it.  Overall, 14 times weeds were removed from the area throughout 2012, so there were 14 sets of rankings of weed growth within the three environments.  After the data was collected and tabulated, we discussed the results at our monthly meetings. 

• 3 times out of 14 the area with the commercial weed matting and mulch had the most weeds
• 2 times out of 14 the area with mulch only had the most weeds
• The area with newspaper and mulch never had the most weeds
• ~80% of the time all the areas reviewed against each other had a similar number of weeds

Analysis:

Even though there were some differences in the number of weeds reported in each area it can be concluded from this study that overall there was no real difference in weed growth from one area to another as no one area had the most weeds more than 21% of the time.  Nearly 80% of the time observations were made there were no differences between weed growth due to using weed matting or newspaper with mulch vs. just using mulch.  What could this mean for around the house?  You can spend more money on weed matting or try to use newspaper to prevent weeds, but in the end you'll want to cover both with mulch to give a natural appearance.  With this, the study may lead one to believe that simply using mulch alone with a bit of maintenance throughout the season will give as good a barrier against weeds as other methods. 

Benefits of Mulch:

Benefits of mulch are well known as it inhibits weed germination and growth, holds in soil moisture for your plants, moderates soil-temperature fluctuations, insulates plants throughout the winter, helps keeps roots cool during the summer, and, depending on what you use, adds a bit of nutrients to an area as it breaks down.  There are many mulch types out there, so feel free to ask any representative at your local nursery or store what mulch type would work best for your specific area.

Final Thoughts:

Not only was this study fun, interactive, and time spent outside.....it was fun.  Such studies as this can be done at smaller and larger scales and provide pathways for communication between a family.  In the end it will give parents information and time with their kids while at the same time helping their children learn and promoting environmental responsibility.  Ask any local library or book store for environmental/nature books relating to education and activities and you will find environmental activities for your family to participate in year round.