Gardening Guide: How To Clear A Garden Full Of Weeds

What Are Weeds?

The dictionary definition of a weed is simply any plant growing in an unwanted place. Weeds can grow in very tough conditions including gravel, concrete, and can sprout through cracks in the pavement.

Weeds can quickly take over a garden, depriving other plants of the sunlight, water and soil nutrition required for healthy growth. If not tackled correctly, weeds can be an ever-growing problem.

1. Weeding Manuals and Tools

Having the right tools on hand is essential for clearing your garden of weeds. Popular weeding tools include a spade, garden fork, weeding fork, hoe, and weed pull saw.

It is also helpful to have a manual on hand such as Rodale&8217;s Organic Life&8217;s How To Weed a Garden which provides step-by-step instructions on how to clear a garden full of weeds.

2. Stressing Out the Weeds

One way to tackle weeds is to use a technique called 'stressing out'. This involves cutting off the weed's access to light and water to deny them the nutrients they need to survive.

Popular ways to stress out weeds include:

• Covering the weed patch with a shade cloth or floating row cover
• Laying down a weed-proof fabric or plastic
• Pouring a thick layer of mulch (at least 3 inches)

3. Natural Weed killing Methods

Chemical herbicides can cause a negative impact on the environment by damaging delicate ecosystems. Consider using natural methods for killing weeds.

3.1 Salt

Mix salt with boiling water and pour this on the weeds that need to be killed:

• cup of salt in 2 litres of boiling water
• 3 tablespoons of salt in 1 litre

3.2 Vinegar

Mix 10 parts water to 1 part vinegar in a spray bottle and spray the weed directly. This is an effective way to kill weeds in pavement cracks.

The acid in the vinegar can damage the surrounding plants and soil and should be kept away from desirable plants.

4. Preventing Weed Growth

Taking the time to prevent weeds before they start growing is much easier than waiting until they are fully established. Prevention is not only less time-consuming but it also prevents more weeds from coming in the future.

It's important to keep your garden weed-free by preventing weed growth in the first place. This includes timely weeding, mulching, and proper soil care.

Final WOrd

Clearing out weeds can be a labor intensive job, but a necessary one if you want to maintain a healthy garden in the long run. Taking the time to create a plan of attack, stressing out the weeds, and using natural methods to kill them are all important steps you must take for a successful weed-free garden.