Blog

Non-Chemical Weed Killers

There’s nothing like enjoying fruits and veggies straight from the garden. But if you’re using a commercial herbicide to rid your lawn or garden of pesky weeds, you might be getting more than you bargained for, like dangerous ingredients that can contaminate groundwater, harm beneficial plants, insects, and microbes, and even pose health dangers to people and animals.

Want a more natural, earth-, people- and pet-friendly way to control weeds? Try one or more of these methods.

If you have extra time on your hands, you can get rid of weeds the old-fashioned way – pulling them out by hand. Be sure to wear dedicated gardening gloves to avoid transferring weed seeds to other parts of your lawn or garden, and enlist the help of claws or trowels to loosen roots. Pull weeds out by the root for optimum results.

Sprinkle corn gluten meal to prevent weed seeds from germinating. Keep in mind, it can also prevent other seeds from germinating and growing into plants so don’t try this method in your garden until your plants are fully established.

Cover planting areas with a few inches of mulch. This keeps seeds away from the soil and keeps sunlight from reaching existing underground seeds. Look for organic mulch which retains moisture better and breaks down to enrich the soil beneath.

Pour household vinegar into a spray bottle and spray directly onto weeds. Vinegar cannot tell the difference between weeds and plants you wish to keep, so apply carefully when there is little to no wind, and no rain in the forecast.

Smother existing weeds and prevent new ones from sprouting by covering the soil with a thick layer of newspaper. Like mulch, this prevents sunlight from reaching weed seeds below ground. For best results, remove any visible weeds and wet the soil thoroughly, apply the newspaper and wet again.

Boil a kettle of water and, using potholders, carefully pour over each weed. Tougher weed varieties may need a few applications to reach longer roots.

Good old table salt is a very effective weed killer, but it will render soil useless for a few months so apply just a pinch at the base of each weed. This method works best for destroying weeds between sidewalk and pathway cracks.

Make your own herbicidal soap by mixing equal parts vinegar, dish soap, and salt. Pour the solution into a spray bottle and carefully apply it to offending weeds, avoiding other plantings in the process.

Low-growing plants that spread across and hug the soil are not only pretty to look at, but also allow little to no sun to get through which prevents weeds from taking root and thriving.

As for the healthy part of your lawn, garden, and shrubbery, can you reach them all effectively with the outdoor faucets you already have. If not, contact Messmer Mechanical today to replace an existing faucet or add one or two to make watering so much easier and faster. And don’t forget to ask about frost-free outdoor faucets that won’t freeze water inside the pipes or cause them to crack.