Do's and don'ts

With the support of the European Life+ Project, De Saedeleir was able to install several pilot sites in different European countries. These pilot sites allowed De Saedeleir to examine the evolution of its Biocovers.  

 

Hereunder you’ll find the do's and don'ts explained by pictures:

 

  1. After installing the plants, all plant holes should be closed off carefully with the biomat again. The ends of the mat should be covered with some gravel or sand. This is important to avoid the growth of weeds where they really should not grow.
  2. In order to avoid damage by wind, sufficient pins must be used. Small piles of sand or gravel can also be used to ensures that the mats are firmly tied to the ground.
  3. Although bark might be used, it is not recommended at all :
  • Weeds will grow easily on a bark layer. Even on a thick one.
  • Bark will slide down from a slippery mat if it’s being used on an inclined area.
  • Bark gets removed easily by birds or animals.

 

  1. Several  PP/PET/PE weed control systems  are not UV-stable and will start to degrade after 3 - 5 years. The degraded (= not biodegraded) fractions are blown all around by the wind and will finally stay forever in the ground. Biocovers will biodegrade and the biodegraded fractions will be food for the plants (compost).
  2. Birds are a big fan of natural fiber mats such as jute or coco. In spring they will start picking the fibers in order to use the material for their nests.
  3. Use sufficient permeable mats . New and young plants will easily die due to bad permeability of woven or spun bound or PE-cocos mats.
  4. Natural fiber mats turn white after exposure to the sun.
  5. Removal of aggressive weeds and thorough cleaning in advance is necessary to prevent unwanted weed growth.
  6. To avoid damage to the Biocovers, used on sharper slopes with soft underground, Biocovers of 200gr should be used instead.