Weeds are the bane of many a garden, sprouting up unbidden and making you want to pull your hair out.
There is plenty of information and old wives tales out there but we wanted to put all of the good information in one place
STOPPING WEEDS COMING UP
This is the main problem for areas of slate, gravel and decking.
That's right decking
Whether you are building your own deck or having someone install a deck for you, ensure they put weed suppressant down under your deck or you will have weeds growing up between the boards in no time.
Now not all weed suppressant is created equal
And not wanting to name any names but there are a few garden and hardware stores out there selling cheap, low quality weed suppressant.
We like to save the pennies as much as the next person but if you put down cheap, low quality suppressant that rots after a year then it was a waste of money
Better to get something a bit higher spec that lasts you.
The type of weed suppressant we use is heavy duty, you can get it from a bunch of places including Amazon, if you follow this link you will see exactly the type of weed suppressant we use.
You want a weed suppressant that is heavy duty, but also let's water through so you don't end up with flooding, which is a problem if you just use tarpaulin.
If you want a quick ready reckoner, if you can tear the suppressant with your hands there is a good chance it won't last very long, the type we use I can't tear by hand no matter how hard I try
HOW TO LAY WEED SUPPRESSANT
Two quick rules for laying weed suppressant.
1. ENSURE IT OVERLAPS. So the second piece overlaps the first piece by a good few inches, if you just butt them up next one another then weeds will grow between where the two pieces meet
2. WEIGH IT DOWN. Old bricks, bits of broken slab or a couple of shovels of gravel are all that is needed. You don't need to go overboard you just want to make sure weeds can't sprout and simply push the weed suppressant aside.
WEED KILLER
You might not like to hear this but the simple truth is weed suppressant alone won't keep you weed free.
Yes it will stop weeds from growing underneath
However the wind will blow the seeds of weeds upon the breeze and drop them anywhere which means weeds can still grow in your gravel area even if you put down good quality weed suppressant
Don't fret, all you need is some good quality weed killer to keep things looking smart.
WHAT WEED KILLER TO USE
In our experience the weed killers which are the most effective at killing weeds all contain something called Glysophate.
However Glysophate is pretty nasty stuff so you must be careful when you use it, and not use it in areas where there are animals.
For the domestic user we think a weed killer that is ready to go out the bottle is better than one in concentrate that you have to mix up yourself so we would recommend this weed killer which can be found at most stores and even supermarkets.
HOW TO USE WEED KILLER FOR SAFETY
1. Do not get any of the weed killer on you
2. Do not get any weed killer in your eyes
3. If in doubt wear goggles, long sleeves and gloves
4. Do not use in area where there are pets or other animals in case they brush their faces past active weed killer or chomp in the weeds
5. Be careful of using when windy in case the spray blows back at you
HOW TO USE WEED KILLER FOR OPTIMUM RESULTS
1. Use when the weed is growing, not when it is fully established
2. Use on a dry day, preferably when there has been a couple of dry days together so that the plant is thirsty.
3. Do not use if it is likely to rain in the next 12 hours as it may wash some of the weed killer away
4. Spray over the plant and the leaves
5. Target the spray, do not just spray the whole area or you may kill plants you want to keep and patches of lawn.
HOW TO DEAL WITH WEEDS WHEN YOU HAVE PETS
We have yet to find a good weed killer that is safe to pets, if you know of one please let us know and we would be happy to try it out.
If you are worried about animals getting to the weeds within a few hours of treatment then we would recommend you pull the weeds out by hand.
If removing by hand ensure you get the full root of the weed to stop it from growing back.
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