The ART in FIRE

Eco-Friendly Weeding

Shades of Green

by Lindsay Bailey

Keeping your yard & garden beautiful and weed free doesn’t mean you have to drench it in chemicals. There are lots of ways to kill weeds without synthetic chemicals that can kill other plants, ruin soil, contaminate water and potentially  be dangerous to people and pets.  Here are some natural ways to keep those weeds from taking over:
Boiling water poured on weeds over three to four days will cook the roots which in turns kills them.
Mulch is another excellent way to kill weeds. Plastic, wood, fabric or organic materials covering soil will suffocate weeds below and form a barrier to keep new weeds from rooting. Placing black plastic over bare ground in sunshine will add the element of sterilizing heat if you have a whole area that can be covered for at least a few weeks.

Sheet Mulch is one of the best ways to discourage weeds from growing.  Sheet mulch can be made of newspaper, cardboard, banana peels and other organic materials. Simply cover the ground with around the plants you want to grow with sheet mulch. Be sure to leave room for air circulation and the mulch will perform as a natural barrier against photosynthesis from going on in the soil.  Then, spread weed seed-free compost, consisting of conditioned compost, leaves, wood chips or branches, on top of the weed barrier.

Vinegar is a great natural solution to controlling the weeds in your dry creek beds, side walk joints or spot killing.  It’s also best not to apply vinegar with a sprayer as it will burn surrounding plant foliage. Household vinegar is only a 5% concentration which often doesn’t kill roots, causing them to re-grow.  However, horticultural vinegar is a more effective 20% concentration and can be purchased online at several sites, including Amazon.com.

Corn gluten meal is inexpensive and can be bought from any garden center or home improvement store.  It’s activated by water (make sure you irrigate your yard after spreading it) and obstructs the emergence of new plants without injuring those that already have good roots. It also releases nitrogen into the soil, acting as nourishment for your established plants.  Corn gluten is most effective as a pre-emergent applied during the growing season.

Plant extracts and oils can also be very efficient. Natural oils like citrus, clove and peppermint are concentrated and will suffocate weeds. Being organic oils, they will break down over time and create no current or residual hazard.

Prepared organic and natural weed killers are easy options as they are already prepared for you. Most of them are a combination of one or more of the above products.
Looking after your yard the eco-friendly way takes a little more patience than simply spraying on weed killer, but it’ll keep all your plants in better shape and it’ll let you enjoy your garden without polluting the wider environment.  What better place to go “green” than in the garden!