10/20/2025
🌿 Why We Don’t Use Fabric Under Mulch
Keeping Your Soil Alive.
Your landscape should stay beautiful and alive from the ground up.
That’s why we skip landscape fabric under mulch — and here’s why you’ll be glad we do:
🌱 1. It Chokes the Soil
Fabric blocks the natural flow of air, water, and nutrients that your plants need. Over time, it suffocates the soil and makes it hard for roots to grow deep and strong.
🪱 2. It Drives Away Earthworms
Worms are nature’s tillers. They loosen the soil, recycle nutrients, and improve plant health — but they can’t move through fabric. Healthy soil needs worms.
💧 3. It Creates Moisture Problems
Water doesn’t always soak in evenly. Some areas stay too dry, while others stay soggy and cause root rot.
🌾 4. Weeds Still Come Back
Wind-blown soil and seeds settle on top of the fabric. Soon w**ds grow through it, and when you try to pull them, the roots tear the fabric.
🍂 5. Mulch Can’t Do Its Job
Mulch is supposed to decompose and feed the soil. Fabric stops that process, leaving your mulch to rot on top instead of enriching the ground.
🌸 6. It Hurts Plant Growth
Shrubs, perennials, and ground covers can’t spread naturally — their roots and runners hit the barrier and curl back.
🧤 7. It’s a Mess to Remove
Once roots and mulch build up over it, removing old fabric is a big, dirty job. Most homeowners end up re-doing the bed completely.
🐜 8. It Can Attract Pests
The damp pocket between mulch and fabric becomes a home for slugs, ants, and other unwanted insects.
⚙️ When Fabric Does Make Sense
Under rock or gravel to keep soil from mixing in
On slopes or non-planted areas for erosion control
For temporary w**d control while new landscapes establish
💡 The Cardinal Way
We use a thick, natural layer of mulch — about 2 to 3 inches — without fabric.
It keeps w**ds down, improves soil every year, and keeps your garden alive with earthworms and healthy microbes.
Healthy soil. Healthy plants. No shortcuts.
That’s the Cardinal Landscaping standard.