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Weeding Blunders That Make Gardening More Difficult
These tips on optimal timing, essential tools, and effective techniques will give you a significant advantage this planting season.
For the majority of gardeners, weed removal is not exactly an enjoyable task. It often feels like a never-ending battle, particularly during the growing season. However, maintaining a weed-free garden contributes to a tidy and well-kept appearance, especially after a thorough weeding session. In addition, regular weed control goes beyond aesthetics, as these unwanted intruders compete with your plants for essential resources like sunlight, water, and nutrients. If left alone, aggressive weeds can completely take over your flower beds, suffocating your favorite vegetables or flowers. Even worse, certain weeds can serve as hosts for diseases and pests, facilitating their spread to your cultivated plants. By avoiding common weeding mistakes, you can simplify the process and make it more manageable.
Blunder: Not Identifying the Weed
Understanding the weeds growing in your garden is crucial in devising an effective control strategy. A common challenge faced by gardeners in their fight against weeds is the lack of information about the specific weed species. By being able to identify the weed, you can gather valuable insights on how to effectively manage it.
To begin with, understanding whether you are dealing with an annual, perennial, or biennial weed is helpful. Annual weeds can typically be controlled by cutting them down before they have a chance to seed, whereas perennials and certain biennials will regrow from their roots even after being cut. Learning about the methods of spread for particular weeds (think seeds, runners, or suckers, etc.), their flowering periods, and the timing of seed germination can also be highly beneficial in developing targeted control measures.
Blunder: Disregarding the Seeds
Many weeds have the ability to spread through their abundant seed production, with these seeds often remaining viable in the soil for long periods of time awaiting favorable conditions to sprout. When handling weeding tasks, it is important to keep this in mind and minimize soil disturbance as much as possible. Also, laying down a layer of mulch serves as a protective barrier, which effectively prevents weed seeds from accessing light and sprouting.
Taking proactive measures to remove weeds before they have a chance to set seeds is highly beneficial in reducing future weed growth. Pre-emergent herbicides, specifically designed to eliminate germinating weed seeds in the soil, can be an effective control method. However, it is important to note that these herbicides will also inhibit the germination of desirable seeds, so be cautious and avoid using them in areas where you plan on sowing seeds.
Blunder: Using Herbicides Wrong
Aside from pre-emergents, there are various types of other weed killers available. It is important to exercise caution and follow the instructions provided on the label when using any weed killer. Avoid applying these products on windy days, and be sure to wear appropriate protective clothing, including gloves, a mask, eye protection, long pants, a long-sleeved shirt, socks, and closed-toe shoes.
Selecting the right herbicide for your specific needs is crucial. Certain herbicides are selective, targeting only grasses or broadleaf plants, while non-selective herbicides eliminate any plant that is sprayed. To prevent mix-ups, label your sprayer for exclusive use. Even a small amount of herbicide residue can cause significant damage to your garden plants.
Blunder: Not Using the Right Tools
While it may be tempting to rely on a weed whacker for all weed-related concerns, this approach isn’t suitable for every weed type or gardening situation. For example, annual weeds like purslane, chickweed, and lamb’s quarters, should be cut off at the soil level using a sharp hoe. Avoid digging too deeply into the soil, as this could bring up more weed seeds, resulting in additional work for you. When weeding in a vegetable garden, a long-handle hoe proves effective, whereas a hand hoe is ideal for working in confined or densely planted areas, such as raised beds.
If you’re dealing with perennial weeds such as dandelions and burdock, it is recommended to wait until the soil is moist. Then use a cultivator designed for deep digging to extract the weeds’ taproots, making sure all roots are removed to prevent future re-growth. Useful hand tools for digging up perennial roots include a dandelion weeder and a hori-hori knife.
Blunder: Forgetting to Protect Hands
To compound matters, certain weeds like thistle and wild blackberry have thorns, while others like poison ivy and stinging nettle can cause skin irritation. Preventing painful cuts, punctures and rashes — particularly when dealing with unfamiliar plants — can be done by simply wearing protective gloves while you weed.
Blunder: Depending on Landscape Fabric
Landscape fabric combined with mulch has been promoted as a lasting solution for weed control. It can effectively manage weeds in pathways, underneath play sets, or other areas where plant growth is not desired. However, if utilized in vegetable gardens or annual flowerbeds, this combo will most likely need to be replaced every year and it will impede the addition of compost or other soil enhancers that fast-growing annuals often require.
In the case of permanent plantings like perennial gardens or shrub borders, the use of landscape fabric can make weeding more challenging over time. The mulch layer above the fabric accumulates soil and organic debris, providing an ideal environment for weed seeds to settle and sprout. As the fabric gradually deteriorates, weed roots can penetrate the soil, making them harder to remove due to the presence of the barrier. Removing landscape fabric once it has lost its effectiveness becomes a laborious task, worse than just consistently weeding the area.
Blunder: Putting It Off
Weeds tend to spread and become more challenging to remove the longer they grow. Taking action when they are small is much easier and more efficient. As soon as you spot weeds emerging, make it a priority to pull them, saving yourself significant time and effort. This is particularly crucial for woody weeds. Delaying the removal of woody seedlings from trees and shrubs can lead to complications. Before long, you will have to dig deep to extract the roots, and if not entirely removed, some woody plants may send up suckers, creating a persistent problem.
So, put on your gloves, gather the appropriate tools, and get started! Procrastinating when it comes to weeding is always a mistake.
