Does clear plastic or black plastic work better for solarizing the soil.
Clear plastic sheeting kill weeds.
In the northern hemisphere the best time for soil solarization is june and july when the sun is at its peak.
A 5 mil plastic is 0 005 inches thick.
Killing weeds with plastic will have different results depending on the color of the material.
Clear plastic raises the temperature of the soil.
Covering the area with plastic sheeting for a while will kill off the weeds leaving you with weed and plant free soil for your new garden space.
It s an eco friendly way to clear land without having to use herbicides.
The sun heats the soil to temperatures that kill bacteria fungi insects nematodes mites weeds and weed seeds.
I ve got some data and i ve got some pictures.
While black sheeting is more commonly used there are some very distinct advantages to using clear plastic instead.
Black plastic is rated in mils.
On friday i posted on getting rid of st.
Setting up to solarize.
But clear plastic will still let the sunshine reach your soil.
Uie recommends keeping the sheet of clear plastic tightly stretched out over the area for about 2 months.
While clear plastic may be used to prematurely germinate warm weather seeds it may not effectively kill grass.
The heat built up under the plastic will kill any weeds growing under it giving you a weed free bed for planting in spring.
Spread it over a patch of ground during the sunniest hottest months of the year.
Clear the area of plants and debris.
Clear plastic can be used to solarize a bed the year before planting.
The higher the mil number the thicker the plastic.
Once the excitement of starting a new garden wears off for beginner gardeners the questions begin.
Black plastic mulch can kill grass and weeds to make space for a vegetable garden.
This will kill all the grass weeds and.
And then purchase clear plastic sheeting 2 to.
Using clear plastic will heat the soils but still allow light to pass through to the plants below.
Cover the area with clear plastic such as 1 to 4 mil painter s plastic.
The most obvious advantage to using any kind of plastic sheeting is that it will prevent the growth of weeds.
To solarize your soil.
The sheet of clear plastic can be anything from 1 to 6 mil.