Gardening

nnewtoarea

hi all,
trying my hands at gardening for the first time. As you can see from the pics, there is a black kind of covering below which the soil is. Do I need to take this black cover out to start planting. What’s the use of this cover.
Thanks

searchlight123

it's a membrane layer thats been put down to stop weeds growing thru a probably barked or slated border. if you wish to plant a few plants there you can either make a hole in it and add your plants into the soil or pull it up completely and start again. 

FreeBear

Looks like a weed suppression membrane (or geotextile) to stop weeds from coming up. It stops the helpful worms from dragging organic matter down, and any weeds that grow on top of the stuff gets the roots knitted in. The material turns in to a thick mat of roots... Quite horrible stuff really.

In a flower border, a thick layer of mulch is much better - If you can get that material out, the soil will be much better for it.

nnewtoarea

Thanks both. Looks like it’s better to take this membrane out. I am planning to plant some flowers. Will take the membrane out, sow the seeds and cover with compost / soil.

twopenny

The soil beneath a membrane is usually very good because it hasn't been used.

But I would dig it with a fork and add some cheap compost  such as a tomato growbag. They are usually the cheapest. If it's very thick and sticky, which you'll find out when you fork it over, you may need to add some horticultural sand.

Get your compost now. Everyone and his family are stuck at home doing the garden.

Seeds may come up or they may be eaten by slugs. There are cheap plants in the supermarkets now. Get the ones in pots mainly. Those in small packs are slow to grow and you want sucess for your first go.

nnewtoarea

Great. Thanks for the excellent suggestions. After planting I am planning to put some decorative gravel to make the area look better. Hopefully it will come through 

twopenny

If you need any other advice/ideas in the future there's the Greenfingered Moneysaving Forum on here.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/categories/greenfingered-moneysaving

nnewtoarea

Great. Thanks for the sign posting to that forum.

Jeepers_Creepers

If the OP wishes to finish off the surface with decorative chippings around their planting, would you recommend they lay a new membrane first, sliced around the plants?

-taff

Depends on what plants they're planting. Medium/big statement plants, cut through the membrane and plant into earth below. Small seeds or bulbs, take up membrane.

nnewtoarea

I am thinking of not laying a new membrane. Will take this one out, put some plants, cover with compost and soil. Put decorative gravel on top.