Juniper on a hill ...w/ weeds

Another project for the week :)

This juniper has been overrun with weeds. I don't have the time to keep the grass out of it and am looking for advice on what to do with it and the japanese maple nearby. (They are difficult to mow around, too)

Should I pull all weeds and put mulch under the juniper? Do I need to flip the sod all around the maple to help with weed control? Or should I put fabric and mulch? I am clueless! But I do have some leftover compost, mulch and fabric to work with :)

OOps - here are some photos

1) Cut a clean line between grass and juniper. I would go outside the maple, too.
2) Use header board to keep them separate.
3) Mulch all the non-lawn area (inside the header board). Make it thick enough the sun cannot hit the soil.

Thanks Diana!

Will the juniper still grow with all of the mulch? And should I mulch under the juniper? Weeds have been coming up all through it :( I lift the juniper 'fingers' to pull them...

I'd say exactly what Diana has said, the only way to control weeds is to be a step ahead and separating the weed from the grass area with a barrier and mulching the cleared weeded area is about the best way to go, over the periods of time give the mulch a rake over as this will dislodge any small weed seedlings that will always appear, but by taking the rake over the mulched area is going to help prevent all the area being smothered in long /wide rooted weeds like your dealing with at the moment.

I can only assume that your dealing with a neglected garden from reading your threads, my advice would be to concentrate on one area at a time, best to have an area completely and thoroughly brought up to scratch than try do a bit here and a bit there.
We took over an old Victorian garden that had been neglected for many, many years and we attempted to clear here and there but in the end we were chasing our tails and not winning in any direction so we started to do one area then the next when area one was finished.
Hope this helps you out a little and before long you get the place fixed out and a routine going.
Good luck and kindest regards.
WeeNel.

The juniper should grow better with the mulch.
Mulch holds moisture in the soil, moderates the soil temperature, slowly decomposes adding organic material to the soil, encourages beneficial soil organisms like earthworms, discourages weeds....

Mulch everywhere!

If you are tackling a large, neglected garden, then the first thing I would do is to mulch everything that is not lawn. Deep mulch.

Then, as you tackle each area pulling weeds, pruning, make sure the mulch gets put back and added to if needed.
A year or 2 from now when you are ready to plant the soil under the mulch will be so much nicer for the plants, and much easier for you to work with.

I had a similar problem with blue rug juniper infested with grass/weeds. After giving it a good weeding, I slipped pieces of recycled asphalt shingle under the spreading branches (any heavy duty barrier will work, but the shingles "disappeared" under the juniper). A few stray grass/weeds will pop up, but if you mulch all around (as advised) and keep after it, it's not that bad. I've also used old rubber floor/welcome/car mats in the same way. You'll need to be sure that you leave at least a few openings for air/water to penetrate, but this method works well. (Juniper usually likes to be on the dry side, so apparently it doesn't mind this sort of mulching.) When you do mulch, be careful not to bury any of the juniper branches...they will rot.

I've been using sheets of newspaper under mulch to prevent weeds from growing. I wet the newspaper once it is down, make sure it lies really flat to the ground, then mulch heavily enough to hide it. The thicker the layers, the longer it will last. In areas where I know I'll be planting soon, 3-5 sheets are enough. Recently I read that 12 sheets will last up to 5 years.

I use corrugated cardboard and mulch heavy.

Very seldom weed by hand I use long handle reciprocating saw with a used long blade and works like a charm. Time is the essence for me.

Belle

OK, I am going to tackle this project after work :)

WeeNel - you are correct. We bought our home a few years ago and it had been neglected for some time. We have done a lot! This year the focus is on the gardens. My DH leaves on a boat for part of the month so it gives me a goal to get things done for when he returns, then we tackle the bigger projects together and get time for RR :)

Thank you all for the advice! I will post pics when this is done.

beelady, I know how it feels to be left on your own for long periods of time with a huge project to attend to but it makes you strong mentally, helps you relax (yes relax once you have achieved some, even little, amount of advancement) is a boost to get you further into the project, you should be very proud of yourself and hope your DH appreciates what a star you are.

The beauty of gardening is it's a slow process, some days you look out the window and think "that's a great big job done" other days you ask yourself, "how come there is nothing to show for a long, toilsome day" just keep a plan in your mind or better still on paper with pictures to remind you where your going and also where you've been with the huge task you have taken on.
Good luck and kind Regards. WeeNel.

Came across this tonight :) was really nice to read again. I'll post photos if the change :) its been 7 years - whoa :)

I hope you did not choose the asphalt shingle or rubber mat approach...