Not all gardeners are bothered by weeds, but even the most accommodating can grow weary of weeds that outshine their vegetables or flowers.
Tom Holcomb, owner of Holcomb Garden Centers, hears weed woes on a regular basis. The prevalent thought seems to be: “Next year I’m going to plant weeds and let the flowers take over,” he said.
Most weeds fall into one of two categories: grassy or broadleaf.
“Weeding is not fun, but it is a necessary garden chore,” Mr. Holcomb said. “Ninety percent of any good-looking garden is maintenance. Plan ahead, and prevent most weeds and grass. It’s inexpensive and easy.”
Mr. Holcomb offered these tips.
1 Prevention. The adage “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” is especially true with weed control. The ideal time to control weeds is before they start. When your garden is freshly planted, apply a good weed-and-grass preventer. Mr. Holcomb recommends Dimension for flowers gardens and an herbicide containing Treflan for vegetable gardens. Both will stop weeds from sprouting in your garden.
2 Barrier. Another preventive method is to place a barrier on top of soil and a layer of mulch on top of the barrier. Do not use plastic sheets because they will block water, air and/or food from getting to the roots of desirable plants. Landscape fabric works best.Choose a quality that equals the amount of foot traffic the garden will get. A lot of walking in the garden should warrant the highest-grade landscape fabric. For a temporary barrier in the vegetable garden, apply several layers of newspaper with a layer of mulch on top. In the fall, you can till it all in the soil as organic matter.
3 Hand pulling. While weeds are young and few, hand pulling is very effective. The best time to pull weeds is after a rain or recent watering. The soil is softer, and you are more likely to get all the roots. Pull a few weeds, and take time to admire the garden as you work.
4 Mechanical. In the vegetable garden, it is common to run a tiller down the rows. The best results come from shallow tilling in the morning, thus allowing weeds to dry up and die in the afternoon sun. For small areas and flower gardens, a trusty hoe is the weapon of choice. Try to chop or cut weed roots just below the soil surface. This should result in the roots not resprouting and the top dying.
5 Spray. If your flowers or vegetables are taken over by Bermuda grass, barriers, pulling and hoeing will not help a bit. There is an easy answer: Ferti-Lome Over the Top grass killer. This spray will kill Bermuda grass with no harm to flowers, roses, shrubs, lilies, irises and most vegetables. Spray Over the Top on your garden, and the Bermuda grass will start to die within one to three weeks. An 8-ounce bottle covers up to 14,400 square feet and saves you hours of repeated weeding.