Burlap is an inexpensive and biodegradable way to solve a variety of garden problems.

Burlap sacks can be used in many ways in your home garden. Gardeners often use burlap because of its superior strength, and environmentally friendly composition.

Burlap (Hessian or crocus) is a woven fabric usually made from the jute plant. The skin, or sisal fibers, are woven together to make fabric. Here are four easy ways to use burlap coffee bags in your garden: weed fabric, pest control, liners for plant baskets and containers, and weather protection.

1. Weed Fabric

Got weeds? Use burlap coffee bags as an alternative to synthetic weed fabric. When dandelions, clover, or even moss start to take over your garden, you want a safe and environmentally friendly way to keep them at bay. Line the ground around your plants with burlap as a barricade against weed seeds coming into contact with the soil. You wont have to spend your weekends hunched over, pulling out the invaders; your knees and back will thank you.

The burlap will gradually break down in the soil, adding another layer of compost material when you turn your garden each year. The added nutrients and organic material in your soil will help your veggie and flowering plants all year.

2. Pest Control

Not all garden invaders come in the form of invasive plants. Protect young trees and plants from nibbling creatures by gently wrapping the trunks with burlap strips. The natural brown color of the burlap will blend into the trees trunk. You can also create a more significant barrier with burlap. By wrapping lengths of burlap around fence posts, you can build a temporary fence to discourage curious deer or other animals from foraging on your young sapling trucks and leaves. Stake your posts around 1-2 feet from your plant depending on its size. Then wrap burlap from post to post.

Make sure that your burlap fence is at least 3-4 feet high to prevent the deer from just leaning over and munching on your plant. This barrier will give the trees a chance to mature, grow into shade, or produce fruit.

3. Liners for Plant Baskets and Containers

Use burlap coffee bags as a liner for hanging baskets & window boxes to prevent soil from just washing away.

Burlap helps retain water in highly porous containers such as terra cotta pots. First, take a large rectangle/circle or two or three strips of burlap and line your terra cotta pot. If you are using a single piece, you will want to fold the material so that it fits against the walls of your container. If you are using strips, create a X at the bottom of the pot with the pieces. Your burlap should stop about two inches from the top of your container. Then add a few rocks to the bottom of your pot. The stones will allow the water to flow away from the soil and help prevent root rot. Then add your soil mixture and your plants.

Remember to have your plant and dirt at least inch from the top of your pot. Your geraniums, marigolds, or other plants will thrive for you to enjoy during its growing season.

4. Weather Protection

Use burlap as temporary shade for young plant transplants. Just drape the burlap over individual plant cages, or staple it to wooden stakes to protect a larger garden area. These burlap covers will also prevent a light frost from settling on plants, helping you to extend your growing season a few more weeks in both directions. Youll be tasting delicious veggies and enjoying pretty flowers a little longer.

Be sure to use natural burlap and not a synthetic version made from plastic or propylene yarn.

Weve got enough burlap for all your gardening needs!

For only a dollar donation to Grounds for Health, a nonprofit that helps fight cervical cancer in developing countries, you can get a burlap sack. You can buy as many as you require at either of our Batdorf & Bronson Coffee Roasteries.

Let us know how you use burlap in your home in the comments below, on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.