Keeping Organic Gardens Weed Free
Weeds, we all have and have spent too much time removing them from our gardens. Over the last few years I have discovered a few nice ways to keep my gardens weed free and my time pulling them significantly reduced.
Here is a list of the things I have done to reduce the amount of weeds in garden:
1. Designated walkways : In my permanent vegetable garden I have walkways that don’t ever see a tiller or turning fork, why bring fresh weed seeds to the surface. I keep all my walkways covered in mulch material. Turning or agitating the soil introduces seeds to sunlight and allows them to germinate.
2. Effective use of mulch: Once my plants start growing I lightly mulch around them, this helps keep the weeds down and preserves moisture. I tend to mulch with chopped leaf mulch or dried grass cuttings. I avoid heavy sawdust layers in my vegetable garden; sawdust can rob the soil of nitrogen as it breaks down and I just don’t like the look of it blowing around.
3. Direct watering your plants: I installed a nifty drip irrigation system a few years ago that allows me to save water and water each plant type according to need and climate desired. This has a double benefit as I am saving money and the environment by not wasting water and not watering the weeds. (more details on that system with my next post, I promise)
4. More efficient weeding: Using the standard farmers hoe is nice but there have been some nice advances in equipment. Using a weeding hoe, shaped like a stirrup, that passes just below the soil to cut the weed off from the root is a quick way to work larger areas. I have also made good use of a gas flame tool to “cook” the tender weeds in their beginning stages, this can’t be used around tender spouts you would like to keep but works well in larger areas or walkways. (use care with open flame, pay attention to fire hazards and conditions, I use my flamer after a light rain or in the early mornings)
5. Corn Gluten: The by-product of making corn syrup is corn gluten, which can be purchased at your local farm store. This product is a yellowish powder that is spread heavily over the soils surface to smother the weeds before they can germinate. The corn gluten breaks down into nitrogen rich fertilizer to feed the plants, I use this when transplanting in the spring and not when planting seeds for obvious reasons.This is an excellent lawn care item, we have used corn gluten for years and have seen our sandy soiled lawn improved dramatically since.
5. Layering with Paper: Years ago I was cleaning the yard and noticed that paper smothered plants, both good and bad plants. Now when I plant flower gardens I will layer newsprint under the mulch as a super effective weed barrier. Not only does it block out the weeds but breaks down easier and is easier to place your plants through in future plantings. I have used this method for starting new gardens for over twenty years, recently I have read more than one article regarding lasagna gardening that also uses this paper method. I’ve noticed they call it lasagna gardening these days.
6. Organic battle the bulk: There are plants that you have to remove both above ground and below ground portions: dandelions, crabgrass, vetch and wild strawberries just to name a few. If you take time to remove all of the plant then over time you will have a weed free garden space.
If you know of any other methods not mentioned here I would love to hear from you.
These are great tips, Ican't wait to get out and plant my first garden of the year and look forward to your drip irrigations blog post.
Thank you, I will work on that drip irrigation post in the next two weeks..
Brilliant tips, I've never been brilliant at gardening, the amout of plants I've pulled out thinking they were weeds 😆 So these tips will certainly help me reduce the accidental removal of flowers 😉
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I think we all have pulled the wrong thing from time to time.. after a few years you will start to recognize the plants from the weeds easily. Like anything,the more time invested the more skilled you become. Good luck with your gardens and keep me posted on your progress.
Just knew that there are a lot of ways to avoid the weeds problem.
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Yes there are many ways to remain weed free without the use of harmful chemicals.
Thanks for all these top tips on keeping weeds away from gardens. Didn't know that paper layers keep weeds away from gardens.
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Yes they are very effective if you put down at least 5 layers, try not to use paper that is heavily inked in the vegetable gardens.
This will be my third year planting a vegetable garden. The weeds got out of control last year. My garden is 20'X30' roughly. I spent 7 hours one day last summer just pulling weeds.
This year I placed a strip of weed paper perpendicular to the rows in my garden as my walkway. I will also cut and place some more weed paper or newspaper mulch as you suggested in between the rows.
Lastly I was given a small Mantis tiller that I need to get working again. I may just till the weeds in between the rows with the Mantis. If this works effectively then I will not need to place anything in between the rows.
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Thank you for your comments, weeding isn't a favorite task for any gardener, with experience you will be able to keep them under control before the weeds get the best of you. You're working in a good sized space and I imagine you have had many varieties of produce planted. If you do use newspapers remember to keep them whole and use multiple layers, covering the newspapers with mulch of leaves, lawn clippings or straw to keep them down.
A gift of a Mantis, you are a lucky gardener, I have one myself and enjoy the ability to get into small spaces when needed. Some gardeners prefer to not disturb the soil by cultivation as it brings weeds seeds to the surface and interrupts natural activity in the soil. I have gardened both ways and will use my tiller to break apart hard or matted soils. If I find the soil to be loose and friable then I will skip the tilling process and plant directly.
Another method of to beat the weeds is to cover the entire garden with paper and a deep layer of mulch. As the mulch breaks down it adds nutrients to the soil, you then plant directly in the mulch without disturbing the soil at all.
Hi! How long newspapers stay useful until it begins to decompose?
It’s dependent on the weather and ground conditions; it can take months for things to degrade.
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Wonderful tips. Thanks for sharing it with us.