Weed Control
How to Control Weeds in your Garden
At a Glance
- Hand weeding can sometimes be the most appropriate method
- Mulching or using strong grwoing ground-cover plants can reduce weeds.
- Choose an appropriate weed killer.
Driveways and Waste Areas
Options for environmentally friendly weed killers now include many that are fast acting. The range of Ready to Use (RTU) weed killers solve the problem of mixing chemicals. Yates Natures Way Organic Weed Gun is clove oil based. It will control broadleaf weeds such as grasses, clover, and moss. Kiwicare Weed Weapon range of RTU and concentrates offer solutions for weeds that are harder to control. Kiwicare Long Term Weedkiller controls current growth and prevents weed seeds germinating.
Vegetable Garden
Regular cultivation between rows and hand weeding are still the safest and most effective control measures for vegetables. Mulching with pea straw or something similar is also very effective at suppressing weed germination. It is also important to not let weeds seed as this will make the weed problem worse next year.
Shrub & Perennial Garden
Here the best result is achieved by using a combination of strong growing ground cover plants or shrubs and mulching each year with pea straw or a garden mulch. For a more permanent mulch and less work, weed mat can be used, keep in mind this can lead to soil becoming ‘sour’ without sufficient drainage and air movement. Whilst it is useful to use weed mat in areas difficult toaccess, similar benefits can be had by using newspaper or flattened cardboard which will suppress weeds. The benefit here being organic products will attract earthworms and other organisms as they break down the organic matter. A more decorative mulch, such as granulated bark, can then be placed on top of the weed mat or other chosen cover. Mulching has an additional benefit of keeping moisture in. Glyphosate Weedkiller can be used to spot spray difficult weeds that persist, but care must be taken to ensure no spray comes in contact with the leaves of desirable plants.
Lawns
Weeds in new lawns largely disappear after 5 or 6 mowings. Once the lawn has been established for a year, broad leaf weeds can be controlled with Yates Turfix weed-killer. Weeds in lawns can be suppressed by topdressing three or four times a year with Tui Lawn Fertiliser.
Top Tips for using Weed Killers
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Positively identify the weed
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If you don’t know what the weed is,bring a sample into a Nichols Garden Centre where one of our garden advisers will assist you with identification.
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Where are the weeds growing?
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Different weed-killers are used in different situations - e.g. a lawn, a driveway, a shrubbery.
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Consider how the weed-killer works
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A leaf absorbed weed-killer such as Amitrole is leaf absorbed and translocated and therefore is only effective when there is lots of leaf growth present on the weed.
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Time of the year or stage of the weed
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Annual weeds are easiest killed when young, while perennial weeds with a large root system need to be in active growth and in full leaf.
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Weed Spraying Safety
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Personal protection is important, wearing gloves and eye protection should be used. Spraying on a calm day is vital so that only target species are controlled, however spray drift can occur even on calm days. Consider putting a physical barrier eg flattened cardboard around desired plants. Disposal of weeds that have been sprayed is important as information is now available relating to compost becoming contaminated from the use of herbicides. Read direction carefully on chemical containers, they list out some of the hazards relating to weed disposal.
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Application Rate
With weed-killers the dilution rate or strength of the solution is not as important as the amount of chemical applied per square metre. Therefore be sure to measure up the area to be sprayed, so that the correct amount of chemical to be used can be calculated.
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