How To Get Rid of Weeds Naturally

The task of weeding the garden is probably one of the most laborious chores every gardener needs to do, especially during hot summer days. The first few weeks of weeding can be mildly satisfying, but after a few weeks, the chore seems overwhelming and tedious.

It’s important to remove the weeds and keep them from invading your garden. But it doesn’t need to be such a difficult chore. Battling weeds can be a lot easier with these weeding hacks.

How to Get Rid of Weeds Naturally

Water Them

Start weeding while the soil is still wet, either after watering or after it rains.

It is far easier to remove them, especially getting all of the roots out making it harder for them to return, when the soil is still moist.  It is so much more difficult to remove them when the soil is dry.

Salt Them

Did you know you can create a natural weed killer in your kitchen without spending a lot of money or time?

Salt is a common ingredient in many natural weed killers. All you need to do is mix 1 pound of salt (you can use rock salt or table salt) per one gallon of water.

Use this solution to spray directly onto the weeds, but make sure to avoid the plants. It will easily dry out the leaves and stems, killing them off quickly. Just keep in mind it will do the same to your plants, so be careful how and where you use the mixture.

Off With Their Heads

If you can’t remove the weeds down to the root, the next best thing to do is chop off their heads.

Cut back the tops of the weeds to reduce reseeding.  Without the seeds in the heads, they can’t multiply. This also forces the weeds to use up their food reserves and exhaust the supply of root buds, resulting in its limited spread. You can use pruning shears or a string trimmer to lop off the heads of larger weeds.

Schedule It

Instead of weeding your garden for an entire day, most likely resulting in back pain, try weeding your garden every other day for at least five to ten minutes a day.

After watering your plants, roam around your garden and start pulling out the weeds.

This will be easier for you and once they are all removed you’ll just need to keep an eye out for any new ones that pop up which makes the chore much quicker.

Boiling Water

A lot of pro gardeners swear by pouring boiling water on the weeds. We’ll see how many when I start my Master Gardening classes later this year!

It’s hard to pluck out the weeds from the walkways and pavement, but one of the easiest ways to remove them is by pouring boiling water on them. When doing this, be sure to wear closed toed shoes and again be cautious near plants as this will also kill them.

Vinegar

Fighting weeds naturally is better for you, the environment, your pets, and plants.  You can use things you already have on hand like vinegar, to fight weeds in your garden.

Vinegar contains 5 percent acetic acid, making it an effective weed killer. It contains acid that kills plants by removing the water from the stems and leaves.

Prepare a mixture by adding 1 cup of vinegar to a gallon of water. Spray the solution on the weeds but avoid your plants.

Prevention

While there are some products you can purchase that keep weeds from germinating for up to six months, mulching is a good way to prevent these pesky weeds from growing.

Bare soil is an invitation for the weeds to grow. By applying mulch, you can prevent them from growing much more easily.

There are organic materials you can use for mulching like straw and leaves. Not only that, but they also decompose and enrich the soil with nitrogen leaving it even better for next season.

Weeding doesn’t have to be such a daunting task.  These hacks for weeding your garden should help you get on top of the problem and eliminate weeds altogether.