The constant gardening struggle: weeds. Weeds are a problem that casual and advanced gardeners have struggled with. You are not alone with this problem. The good news is, you no longer have to be in a constant battle with weeds in your garden.
So, how are you supposed to stop them from growing and taking over your garden? Can I really get rid of weeds without using harmful chemicals? Yes, you really can!
Weeds cause your plants to become overcrowded. They deplete the soil of nutrients that the plants you are trying to grow need. They also compete with your plants for the much-needed water and sunlight your garden receives.
What You Will Need:
• Landscape Fabric
• Landscape Fabric Pins
• Organic Mulch or Soil
• Boiling Water
• Natural Weed Killer
• Decorative Rocks
• Plants of Your Choice
• A Shovel
De-weed Your Garden
The first step in keeping your garden free from weeds is to remove them from the area you want to work with. Use a shovel to get rid of perennial weeds with their roots to prevent regrowth. If you do not remove the roots along with the weed, the weed will just regrow.
Lay Down the Landscape Fabric
The next step is to lay down and prepare your landscape fabric. Make sure the fuzzy part of the fabric is face down. This helps the fabric stick to the ground and not move. Use the landscape fabric pins to hold the landscape fabric in place.
You can use more than one sheet of landscape fabric for a larger area. Make sure the pieces of fabric overlap here and that the edges are secure and leave no spaces for weeds to grow through.
Pro-Tip: A common mistake is not using enough fabric pins. Make sure to use them frequently. There is no such thing as too many here.
Mulching
After the landscape fabric is in place it’s time to place down your mulch. Make sure you use a layer of mulch that is between 1-2 inches. The mulch prevents sunlight getting to the dirt below. This also helps to stop weeds from growing.
Pro-Tip: Some mulch may accidentally contain weed seeds, so make sure your mulch is coming from a nursery you trust to be weed free.
Pour Boiling Water
The next step is to pour the boiling water on top of your mulch. This will help kill any weeds that might be in your mulch that you are unaware of. This is also a good time to use your natural weed killer.
Using Natural Weed Killer
Most weed killers only require you use them at the beginning of the planting season (Spring) and again at the end (mid-Summer) if you plan to grow in fall as well. If not, there is no need to reapply your weed killer until the next time you plan to plant. You are now ready to start planting.
More Tips and Tricks
• Pick one day a week for de-weeding if you find the occasional weed still growing from your mulch.
• You can make a mixture of vinegar and water (in equal amounts) to use on weeds. Be careful not to get this on your other plants though.
• Plant close together to not allow weeds any room to grow.
• You can suffocate weeds and decorate your garden by placing decorative rocks on top of them.
• Drip irrigation systems can be used to provide only your plants with water and eliminate the concern of the water evaporating.
Conclusion
The prevention of weeds is the best method of treating them. Anyone can have a beautiful garden free of weeds. It does take some time and effort but is worth it. There are a lot of ways to help keep your garden free of weeds, which can motivate you to garden even more. With nicer weather on the horizon, it is a perfect time to get ready and give gardening a try.
I hope you enjoyed this article. Please share your thoughts about the article in the comments, and share it with your friends if you enjoyed this.
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Laura is a graduate of Horticulture and loves nature especially when it comes to flowers and different kinds of plants. She has been a blogger for some years now at Humid Garden.