Weeding a garden is difficult work. Nobody enjoys pulling weeds, but if you want your garden to grow to its full potential, drawing weeds is necessary. Weeds obstruct light from reaching yard plants, and they remove valuable moisture and nutrients.
The best way to clear your yard of weeds is to stop them from growing in the first place. After investing several hours pulling yard weeds, you'll welcome ideas to prevent those weeds from coming back year after year.
News for Your Garden
The Sunday Paper isn't simply for reading. Newspaper is a fantastic product for keeping weeds from growing. Newspaper will allow moisture to reach the roots of plants, but will shut out light to keep weeds from growing.
After you rid the garden area of weeds, merely cover the soil with a number of layers of black and white paper. Do not utilize newspapers with colored ink. The ink might contain lead and eventually contaminate the potting soil. Water the location promptly after laying the black and white newspaper, and if needed, position rocks on the papers to hold them in place.
If you don't get a day-to-day or Sunday paper, ask friends or relatives to save them for you. Newspapers make terrific garden mulch. Newspaper is Eco-friendly, and most importantly, newspapers can be obtained for free in most cases.
Get Started Early For A Weed-free Garden
If you want to offer your plants and vegetables a boost and keep weeds out at the very same time, think about putting sheets of black plastic over your yard soil. Black plastic sheets applied early in the growing season will help to warm the soil, and plants will get a helpful head start while keeping out nutrient-robbing weeds.
You can find rolls of black plastic in yard centers like Home Depot and Lowe's. Simply trim the plastic to the appropriate size, and utilize landscaping stones or paving stones to hold the plastic in the designated area. Cut slit openings in the plastic with an utility knife, and plant vegetables and flowers within the slotted openings. The weeds won't grow, and you're most likely to have greater yields and optimal development.
Preen Your Backyard Garden
In years past I applied a granular product to my yard called "Preen." This year I turned over the dirt with a shovel, and I removed clumps of weeds prior to seeding my small vegetable garden. Regrettably, I didn't use Preen. Although I had Preen in my tool shed, I didn't use the product due to the fact that my zucchini seeds hadn't yet sprouted. Preen should not be used in areas that have been seeded since it works by preventing germination. After the zucchini seeds turned into plants, I still didn't apply Preen, and this was an even big error.
Now I have crabgrass and various other weeds to combat. I've pulled the weeds from about 1/4 of my backyard, however I have a long way to go. I've sprayed Preen in the weeded area, and I plan on pulling the weeds and using Preen up until the garden is totally weed-free.
When I realized how quickly weeds took over my garden, I was stunned. I briefly questioned why my garden had so many weeds, however it didn't take long to determine why this summertime was different from years past. I made use of Preen throughout previous growing seasons, and weeds were never a problem.
Preen will not eliminate existing weeds. It's still necessary to get rid of them first, however after applying this wonderful product, the weeds will not come back. Your yard will be magnificently preened and free from weeds.
Preen And An Important Safety Tip
Be sure to store left over fertilizer and weed killers out of the reach of children, pets or livestock. Fertilizers contain harmful toxins and can be extremely harmful to small children and animals. It's highly advised to store these in a safe and dry area in your garage or outside storage shed.
If your garage is frequented by young children, you'll want to make sure to keep it locked away in a garage cabinet. If your storage shed is: (steel, tin or galvanized metal), be extremely careful during summer months. These storage structures are known for being very hot. Fertilizers that are exposed to heat will let off harmful vapors that are easily inhaled and can cause respiratory damage. Be smart and safe and you shouldn't have any problems. Happy Gardening!