Killing weeds sounds like a tough task, and rightly so. How can you kill weeds in the garden with something simple? I will try to explain some of the most sure shot and easy ways to get rid of weeds. I am lazy when it comes to de-weeding and I have found many ways with experience and with an informal interview with Ester Smith, a horticulture development officer. She explained that to start with, we have to have good soil, which you can read out in our Perfect soil mixing guide. So let’s dig right into killing the weeds!
By Simple tilling & Pulling
Spaces between the plants is a perfect weed ground. you can till the soil with a hand tiller while it’s moist and then pick the weeds manually out. You should also water the plants or the beds to make the soil moist and easy to work with. I have seen my personal gardener fill the beds with water and pull out weeds mechanically by hand. I have found that as the water stands, the best part is that the roots of the weeds come washed clean. This way you save the soil from wasting with the roots being pulled out. So this is a very easy and traditional way to getting rid of the weeds.
By Nipping the buds and covering them up
Although plucking the heads of the weeds will not completely get rid of them, it will avoid them to flower and make new seeds. So if you cannot pluck them for good, nip them from above. You can then cover the ground with mulch to deprive them of sunshine and prevent new heads from growing. Some weeds will still grow, so you can hoe the land later and pull the remaining roots when you have more time. Also if the gap between plants is well covered with Mulch, no more weeds will grow. Remember that the mulch has to be thick enough to not let light pass through to the soil layer.
By Spraying Vinegar
You can use diluted 7-8% vinegar to kill weeds. Cover your good crop or plants with plastic sheets or bags properly as vinegar will kill them if exposed. Now spray the vinegar over the weeds nicely. The good thing is that vinegar will break down in the soil afterward. This is a very easy way to kills weeds in your garden without using chemicals or weedicide. After some time, you can remove the protective sheets from the main crop/plants.
By Soil bed priming
There is a practice amongst traditional farmers in some places. Once you prepare your soil bed, do not plant anything. Instead, you can water it and leave it for a few days with intermittent watering. The weeds will start to grow. Let them grow an inch or so and then pull them out after watering. Now your bed is ready to be planted as you have destroyed most of the weed that would otherwise grow with your plants. Also, it is again very important to cover things with mulch so no more weeds grow.
By keeping minimum gaps between plants
If you keep less gap between the plants, there will be not much sunlight on the ground. This is exactly what happens in dense forests. So chances of weed decreases. Although they will still grow, the growth will be slow, stunted, and manageable. It will be easier to mechanically pull out the few remaining weeds and if you have mulch, it may not be a problem at all. Closer placed plants may actually give your garden a more filled-up, lush green look. So it may be a good idea to keep plants close.
By Limiting water supply
Using drip irrigation will ensure you only water the plants you want and not the soil entirely. This will eliminate any weeds growing here and there, thereby creating a clean-looking garden. Drip irrigation not only saves water but saves you precious time and energy digging out the weeds. You can use buried hoses and plant-targeted irrigation techniques as well.
So these were our tips on killing weeds in your garden. If you have some, do share in the comments section below!