No doubt you’ve noticed that weeds are growing like mad during this hot, damp summer. The problem with weeds is that they compete with plants for food and water, they’re very good at it and when they get a grip can smother neighbouring plants.
I don’t have a problem with them in my garden, except for the gravel drive where the car is parked, every inch is covered with plants so there’s just no room for them.
However, I’m battling with them at my allotment, so I thought I’d share some tips about how to deal with them naturally without resorting to chemical weed-killer.
- Cover them with cardboard on larger areas of the garden, this can be covered with soil/compost if it’s in a very visible part of the garden. I’ve used this to great effect on the allotment.
- Scald them with boiling water, make sure it doesn’t splash you or plants nearby, you’ll probably need 2 or 3 goes at them.
- Spray them with a diluted solution of vinegar and water, I’ve used a 50/50 mix, obviously you have to make sure that it doesn’t touch plants you want to keep.
- Don’t leave any patches of bare earth, weeds will quickly take over. Scatter annual flower seeds about or cover, as in number 1 above.
- Simply pull out the larger ones (easier after it’s rained) or scuff up smaller ones with a hoe.
See the earlier post about how to garden organically here.
Jill
