If you have a bunch of cardboard boxes at home and don't know what to do with them, don't throw them out just yet. One homesteader showed how you can repurpose packaging to help manage your garden's weeds.
In a TikTok, Myka (@mjrrh24) showed how to use cardboard and packaging material to prepare a healthy and weed-free wildflower bed for their wife.
@mjrrh24 Making use of those beautiful limbs! We try and not let anything go to waste here. From cardboard boxes, paper packaging and old trees. All these things get a second life, as much as we can. Hopefully in a few months my wife will be able to harvest some beautiful wild flowers, without competing with all the weeds. #gardentok #gardening #garden #homestead #homesteading #homesteadlife ♬ Country - Evgeny
"We try and not let anything go to waste here," Myka explained. "From cardboard boxes, paper packaging and old trees. All these things get a second life, as much as we can."
In the video, Myka lays down flattened cardboard boxes over a patch of weeds that surrounds the perimeter of a fenced-off garden. Underneath the cardboard, they lay down more loosely folded paper packaging that will inevitably biodegrade along with the cardboard.
The materials will ultimately act as mulch, block out light from the weeds underneath, and contribute to greater soil health.
To keep the materials in place, Myka adds bags of soil over the cardboard layer until the soil completely covers the cardboard. They then use pruned black walnut trees' branches to weigh down the edges of the cardboard. The branches create a natural perimeter around a wildflower bed.
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This cardboard hack reduces packaging waste and eliminates the need to use popular store-bought weedkillers, which often contain toxic chemicals harmful to human health.
Gardeners who have used popular herbicides on their lawns have strongly regretted the decision. One of them has seen weedkillers destroy large sections of their yard.
Cardboard mulch instead naturally suppresses weed growth while nurturing soil health. It delivers a healthy and blank earth canvas for gardeners to design as they please.
Another natural method to discourage weed growth is to install a natural lawn.
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$200 or more 💰 Natural lawns use less water and typically provide pollinators with food, which helps protect food supply chains. These plants generally require less maintenance, unlike most traditional, monoculture lawns, saving homeowners time and money on lawn maintenance.
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"I love the use of the limbs!" one TikTok user commented.
"This is genius!" another commenter wrote.
"Great job! That is going to be so beautiful," a third user predicted.
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