We have stacks and stacks of old cotton and burlap seed bags in our barn. I have tried to sell them but knowone has been interested in our area. I am curious if there would be any reason to use them as a base layer for mulching paths in my garden. I would lay them down then add old straw or wood ships. Can you think of any reason this would be a bad idea? Thanks!
There is a local Fair Trade Coffee company that sells their used burlap* sacks cheap to local organic farmers. I've picked them up several times and have used them under mulched paths, cycled them through our brooder and then into the compost or any place I want to discourage weeds and build soil. The ones we get are supposed to be all organic, but there is one stitching used to close the top that is not biodegradable. I try to remove that before using them so I'm not digging it up several years later. I'll do a stack in the evening while listening to a talking book.
*I'm not sure that some aren't other natural fibers than "burlap" - the ones I get are from different countries and have slightly different textures, but they all do about the same job.