Weeds are one of the biggest downsides of gardening. Just as soon as you get the whole garden weeded it seems like they’re sprouting up again.
It is true that weeds are nearly impossible to fully get rid of, but fortunately, there are ways to stunt them so much they’re barely a problem in your garden.
Here are ten ways to reduce your need for weeding.
1. Mulch
Mulch is the go-to for many gardeners, and for good reason. You can use all different kinds of organic material for mulch, such as hay, grass clippings, leaves, wood chips, even store-bought organic mulch. It will also retain moisture in the soil, which is great for the warmer, dryer months.
2. Plastic
A very common conventional way to keep weeds back, black plastic will keep the soil completely dark so any unwanted plants simply can’t thrive. A plus for using plastic is it will keep your soil warm, so it’s great for early spring planting.
3. Cardboard
Cardboard is an excellent and, if you have enough leftover cardboard boxes, a very affordable way to keep weeds back in your yard or garden. It will block out light like the plastic and mulch do, but unfortunately, water doesn’t penetrate it very well so it’s better for outer edges of gardens or walkways. It’s awesome if you want to cover up a resting garden bed, as it will naturally decompose into the soil eventually.
4. Boiling water
Boiling water, like cardboard, is probably best for walkways or along yard or garden edges. It’s ideal for in between bricks or cement. It’s as simple as it sounds, though of course you’ll want to be careful not to splatter yourself with boiling water! Simply boil a kettle and pour over the plants you want to kill.
5. Vinegar
Another method you won’t want to broadcast over your whole garden so as not to kill the plants you do want, vinegar still works great for killing individual leaves. One awesome trick is to put a dog cone around the weed you want to kill, and then spraying the dickens out of it with vinegar.
Weeding can seem like such a time-consuming part of gardening, so try some of these methods out to keep back your weeds and free your time for other things!
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