Today my friend Donna shared a great idea for what to do with worn-out, natural fiber rugs.  Instead of throwing them away, you can use them to keep weeds to a minimum.  Just cut the rugs to size, rake back the mulch around trees, bushes, flowers, etc. and lay the rugs on the ground.  Then rake the mulch back over the rugs.

The rugs will provide a great weed barrier that will decompose slowly over time while keeping weed seeds from sprouting.  Using old rugs is much better for the environment than using the plastic weed barriers you can buy in gardening catalogs, and best of all, weed barriers made from old, natural fiber rugs help you stay frugal and happy, because they’re FREE!

Photograph © iStockphoto.com/Carlos Caetano