Weeds. They’re the bane of every gardener’s existence. They stick out where they are not wanted and could potentially ruin your garden. Well, no longer! Here are 14 tips on how to kill weeds in your garden using things you probably already have in your home!
I. Hate. Weeds.
I’m sure you all can relate.
You start to grow your beautiful dream garden, planting your favorite fruits, veggies, and herbs so you can start eating from your own back yard. You even went as far as coming up with some natural pest control methods to make sure nothing harms your produce and then you see these little things start to pop up… and it seems like your plants stop thriving a bit and even stop growing…
Those are weeds! They like to take away most of the water, nutrients, and even the space of the plants that are already there.
How To Kill Weeds In Your Garden- Once and For All
In my efforts to bring you more gardening tips and tricks, I’ve learned how to keep garden weeds from invading your yard and your garden, choking off the plants you want.
Battling weeds just got a little easier with these 14 gardening tips.
Spray Collar | Bonnie Plants
This is a great gardening hack if you want to get rid of weeds naturally.
Create a spray collar by cutting the top and bottom off a tin can. Use it to direct natural herbicide to the weeds rather than allowing the spray to settle on other areas of your garden. This will also help make sure the herbicide doesn’t get on anything it isn’t supposed to.
Off With Their Heads | Fine Gardening
Sometimes, removing a weed from the ground might be difficult, depending on where they are located or if they are connected with another plant close by. What you can do is at least chop off their heads to reduce reseeding and limit the spread of the weeds.
It’s still productive!
Sprinkle Some Borax | eHow
If ground ivy is taking over your garden or yard, borax is an effective, natural way to get rid of it without killing surrounding grasses!
Borax contains a naturally occurring ingredient called boron that many plants need for proper growth, except for ground ivy. It’s actually toxic to this type of weed and can naturally help you get rid of them!
Lay Down Some Cardboard | Life Is Just Ducky
This is a great option if you have a walkway that is starting to bud many weeds.
To create a clear walkway through your garden, lay down some cardboard over the top of the weeds and cover it with some mulch. Weeds have a difficult time tearing through the cardboard since it’s much thicker.
How to Kill Weeds with Cornmeal | Bob Vila
Surprisingly, cornmeal is effective at keeping weeds at bay!
Sprinkle cornmeal in sections to prevent weed seeds from germinating. Be careful when using it around your garden, though, as it prevents most types of seeds from germinating.
Tip: Wait until your plants are established before using cornmeal.
How To Kill Weeds With Salt | Gardening Know How
I really rely on this kind of gardening hack because I know for a fact it’s something I have in my house and it’s a quick and easy solution!
To kill your weeds, pour some salt over them and let it sit for a few days. Over time, it will dehydrate and dry out the weeds naturally.
Add Some Bark Mulch | Remodelaholic
For many sections of my garden, especially ones with trees, I heavily rely on this hack to keep things nice and tidy. You can use bark mulch to control weeds around your trees so you’re not constantly having to cut and pull weeds. Plus, it even keeps your trees healthier!
Spread Out Some Straw Mulch | River Reporter
Straw mulch is effective around lots of different plants! It discourages weed growth and helps keep moisture in the soil.
I also like to add it to my garden to make it look nice and neat.
Flame Weeding | Gardening To Know
I know this idea sounds a little out there but flame weeding is used as an effective method when it comes to killing weeds. This can be safe if you use the proper equipment and you follow the correct steps. The goal is not to set your plants or grass on fire- it’s to kill the base of the weeds so that it wilts and dies naturally.
Just be careful of doing this in areas with dry grass.
Here are a picture and visual video from Necks Out for Adventure showing you the equipment used and how it’s done.
Lay Down Some Newspaper | A Garden For The House
Use a couple of layers of newspaper to smother weeds!
In established perennial beds, place at least 4 layers of newspaper down around your plants followed by a thick layer of mulch. It works a lot like the cardboard tip I mentioned above, but the newspaper is a little easier to maneuver around your plants.
Got Any White Vinegar? | One Good Thing By Jillee
Undiluted white vinegar works wonders on lots of weeds, especially dandelions.
This 2 ingredient weed-killing spray is super easy to make- and it’s probably something you most likely have in your home! Add a teaspoon of dish soap to your spray bottle to help the vinegar cling to the weeds better.
Pour Some Boiling Water | Life Hacker
Boiling water will certainly kill weeds, but it also kills any plant it touches. If you use this method, make sure you pour the water just a few inches above the plant to avoid splashing it elsewhere.
Trust me, I learned the hard way…
Pull Out That Vodka | First Home Love Life
This weed killing hack is definitely in my top 3!
For weeds that are in direct sunlight, combine one part vodka to six parts water, add in a few drops of dish soap, and spray those weeds into oblivion.
Those weeds will shrivel up within a few hours.
Pull The Weeds Yourself | Good Housekeeping
And if all else fails, you can always use the old-fashioned method: pulling the weeds by hand.
I know it’s not the most exciting but we all know it’s effective and it gets the job done. All you need is a trowel and a few hours of time.
Now that you know how to kill weeds 14 different ways, which one are you going to pick? Let us know in the comments below which one worked best for you and your garden.
Good luck and happy weeding!
For More Gardening Tips, Check Out:
- 19 Genius Garden DIYs You’ve Never Thought Of
- How to Make Compost Soup
- Pet-Friendly Gardening Products
- 16 Super Cute Birdhouse Ideas For Your Garden
- Genius Garden Tool Organization
