When considering ground cover, keep your surroundings in mind as well as the seasons. If you lay down wood mulch around the base of trees and shrubs that, come fall, will have leaves to be raked up, so you’ll end up raking away some of that wood mulch as well. So expect to have to top up your mulch annually to keep weeds away.
Alternatively, especially in heavily treed areas and under pine trees, we recommend using stones as ground cover that are at least ¾” in size or larger. It is easier to blow leaves off the stones, and pine tree needles are better concealed by stone cover.
Whether using wood mulch or stones, do the job right the first time by laying down a fabric weed barrier. Heavy duty weed barrier is available at most garden centres. It comes in rolls either four feet or five feet wide. Simply measure the area you need to cover, purchase the weed barrier and cut to fit. Weed barrier has a shiny smooth side and a softer cotton-like side. Make sure to install the weed barrier with the shiny side up.