It seems like whatever we do (mulch, cardboard, landscape fabric, preen, various weedkillers) nothing works and all of our beds look like this. How do we get these under control once and for all?
It seems like whatever we do (mulch, cardboard, landscape fabric, preen, various weedkillers) nothing works and all of our beds look like this. How do we get these under control once and for all?
Once you knock out all this stuff, it only takes like 5 minutes of maintenance every other week.
MoxieSocks805
More mulch
SnapCrackleMom
I use a hori hori knife to get things like dandelion roots out. Other than that it’s just about regular maintenance. How often do you weed?
Chigrrl1098
More plants. Fill the space and you’ll have fewer weeds. Stirrup hoe the few you’ll get
fLL000
I agree with previous comments: weeding will never be eliminated completely. But after you pull all the existing weeds, mulch more heavily. Like 4 inches thick. You can use herbicides of course, and/or stay on top of pulling weeds when they appear, and re-mulching.
anxietyonline-
There is no once and for all. Clear out all the weeds and then run through the beds with a sharp hoe weekly. If you do it before you feel the weeds need to be addressed, it will always be easy.
fiera6
You’re not actually mulching, you’re decorating with wood chip sprinkles. Pull the weeds, and put 4” of mulch out. If that’s too high, dig down a bit. Weeds need sunlight and water to grow.
theveland
Nejiri or cape cod weeder to rip through fast.
Traditional-Dig-9982
Pull weeds preen then deep mulch
runninpsyche13
A Dutch hoe, more plants and mulch, and hand weeding as needed.
waysidelynne
Plant more densely.
Mrsmanhands
I prefer to give weeds as little space to grow as possible. I’m not a fan of using tons of mulch and I also only work in natural materials. Some flagstone pieces provide a place to step when weeding but also instant create a spot where weeds wonts grow. Next I like to add things like small boulders and logs that can be moved around as plants are added. Then I add natural mulch (hardwood or pine bark) some smaller stones here and there and plug in a bunch of ground covers like sedum, sedges, short ornamental grasses and maybe some ground hogging junipers or bear berry. In shade I’ll use wild ginger, ferns and heuchera.
Adding potted arrangements and birdbaths also take up space where weeds can grow.
toasterchild
I pull some amount of weeds every few days.
WolfsReign37
Density is the answer. Mother Nature will cover exposed earth like scabbing over a wound. Mulch (4” like others have said) will work for a time, but green, growing things will do a much better job suffocating out weeds. If you like the look of larger dotted plants in a garden bed, try getting low ground covers to fill in around them.
Many-Day8308
Deeper mulching and edging. It’s also much easier to take a stroll with your evening beverage and pull weeds every night. It’s a fun way to stay on top of it. My mother gets a lot of visitors so she always takes them on a tour of the yard and yanks a few weeds every time and that’s a great habit to cultivate! 😉
OpinionatedOcelotYo
Ya skip the herbicide I’d say. Get a rampant ground cover you can live with. Mulch thick elsewhere.
182RG
Ground cover. Plant Ajuga around existing plants.
Toan-E-Bologna
Your mulch seems way too thin. Go heavier than you think and when the soil breaks down it will become less compact over time and easier to pull weeds!
CosmosInSummer
Maintenance is the word. You have to constantly work at it. Nice landscapes require work.
One-Process-8731
Once and for all? Ha. Get real. Thick mulch, cardboard first if you want to get fancy, but after that you have to maintain. I use a spray bottle with vinegar, and early in the season I mix a little round up with it, yeah I like to live on the edge. Depending on how much rain there is, I spend time bent over pulling and fluffing mulch. But I enjoy working in the garden. You should learn to enjoy it, or pour concrete if that’s what you want.
faerybones
Try not to have so much visible mulch. Do dense plantings and add groundcovers.
Visible mulch = future home to weeds.
Until you get the plantings in, add a thicker layer of mulch. And pull the weeds every week, when it’s only a few. Don’t wait until you have a carpet of them, and they flower, and drop a zillion seeds.
Edit: It looks like you have a bunch of native plants in there. Are you doing it for pollinators? Some of our native bees burrow beneath leaves/dirt a couple inches during winter. Add leaves into the bed in fall. Don’t do more than 2-3 inches of mulch, or the native bees won’t be able to burrow.
Also be careful what kind of mulch you get, since they will become a solid impenetrable sheet if you aren’t regularly breaking them up. I like pine fines, but even natural undyed shredded hardwood is fine, just don’t let it turn into a solid sheet.
Any solution that requires routine doses of herbicide, is a bad one. If you don’t make your beds a weed magnet in the first place, you won’t need herbicide for this. Do dense plantings.
ParkMan73
I’ve always found that you just have to keep up with the weeds amd then eventually they slow down.
Pull the weeds daily for a while. It doesn’t take that much time. Eventually there will be fewer weed plants dropping seeds and they’ll thin out.
LippieLovinLady
As someone trying to help pollinators, I’d add some native ground cover that flowers to crowd out weeds but if you don’t want to add plants, 1) Weed 2) SEVERAL layers of cardboard that overlaps 3) 3-6” of mulch 4) water regularly the first few weeks to help the cardboard break down and make a home for happy earthworms
jwronk
Did you try weeding?
DirtyDillons
The thing is we are far enough into the season that you have lost for this year. If you want it to be “easy” you start early and do it routinely.
HawaiianHank
you need inches depth of mulch, not a skim layer. also pack it where you don’t want the weeds. weeds need sunlight and air, like everything else.
but, you can’t “leave it and forget it”. take some time each week, two weeks, or three weeks and pull out the weeds. you only get out of it what you put into it.
hypoxiate
I mulch with grass clippings. It mats down really well, keeps moisture in, and is a natural fertilizer. Doesn’t kill all the weeds but gets the majority.
PrimosOG
4” of mulch, minimum.
Rookraider1
Dig it out a few inches down, then apply thick cardboard covering the ground except where the plants are. Cover it very well. Then add a few inches of nuggets. I’ve had great success in areas with much thicker/bigger weeds.
parrotia78
Pre and, more importantly, timely post emergent apps.
twenty1ca
You have to pull the weeds.
JB_141
Go out every morning with a cup of coffee and a clear mind and pull a few out. Enjoy and repeat!
lobr6
The previous owners of our home didn’t get on top of weed control, and on top of that, had bird feeders dropping seeds in various places. We have lots of landscaping and I had a hot mess on my hands when we moved in – if you threw huge thistles and cornstalks in with yours it would look about the same. Hoeing and mulch was ok but not effective. I finally hired a guy (who was working in our neighborhood anyway) to put down some pre-emergent for a few months during the growing season this year. Made all the difference in the world.
CormoranNeoTropical
What makes you think that having a garden doesn’t include repetitive chores, in particular, weeding?
This problem is not going to go away. Even if you covered your yard with concrete you’d still have to weed.
Melech333
“Once and for all” doesn’t exist in landscaping. You have to keep pulling weeds by their roots and covering with mulch to slow their propagation. It won’t just stop forever.
Salty-Cricket7606
People let the weeds grow to seed and wonder why they keep coming back. 🤷♂️. Pull them, remulch, and visit the beds once a week and take a few minutes to pull them before they grow to seed the next generation. You’ll be amazed at what a little maintenance will do and the weeds will slow down over time
Salty-Signal5287
Weeding everyday. I have tried it all too. I just have my son do it alittle at a time and then I will weed it too.
omniwrench-
“Under control once and for all”
There is no “once and for all” where nature is concerned – you keep clean beds by weeding them every week.
If you don’t want to weed your beds every week, then don’t have beds with big gaps in.
Anywhere there is bare earth with enough moisture and sunlight, there will be plants. End of story.
Get a hoe or plant something you like to look at in the gaps.
38 Comments
I just use a hoe.
Once you knock out all this stuff, it only takes like 5 minutes of maintenance every other week.
More mulch
I use a hori hori knife to get things like dandelion roots out. Other than that it’s just about regular maintenance. How often do you weed?
More plants. Fill the space and you’ll have fewer weeds. Stirrup hoe the few you’ll get
I agree with previous comments: weeding will never be eliminated completely. But after you pull all the existing weeds, mulch more heavily. Like 4 inches thick. You can use herbicides of course, and/or stay on top of pulling weeds when they appear, and re-mulching.
There is no once and for all. Clear out all the weeds and then run through the beds with a sharp hoe weekly. If you do it before you feel the weeds need to be addressed, it will always be easy.
You’re not actually mulching, you’re decorating with wood chip sprinkles. Pull the weeds, and put 4” of mulch out. If that’s too high, dig down a bit. Weeds need sunlight and water to grow.
Nejiri or cape cod weeder to rip through fast.
Pull weeds preen then deep mulch
A Dutch hoe, more plants and mulch, and hand weeding as needed.
Plant more densely.
I prefer to give weeds as little space to grow as possible. I’m not a fan of using tons of mulch and I also only work in natural materials. Some flagstone pieces provide a place to step when weeding but also instant create a spot where weeds wonts grow. Next I like to add things like small boulders and logs that can be moved around as plants are added. Then I add natural mulch (hardwood or pine bark) some smaller stones here and there and plug in a bunch of ground covers like sedum, sedges, short ornamental grasses and maybe some ground hogging junipers or bear berry. In shade I’ll use wild ginger, ferns and heuchera.
Adding potted arrangements and birdbaths also take up space where weeds can grow.
I pull some amount of weeds every few days.
Density is the answer. Mother Nature will cover exposed earth like scabbing over a wound. Mulch (4” like others have said) will work for a time, but green, growing things will do a much better job suffocating out weeds. If you like the look of larger dotted plants in a garden bed, try getting low ground covers to fill in around them.
Deeper mulching and edging. It’s also much easier to take a stroll with your evening beverage and pull weeds every night. It’s a fun way to stay on top of it. My mother gets a lot of visitors so she always takes them on a tour of the yard and yanks a few weeds every time and that’s a great habit to cultivate! 😉
Ya skip the herbicide I’d say. Get a rampant ground cover you can live with. Mulch thick elsewhere.
Ground cover. Plant Ajuga around existing plants.
Your mulch seems way too thin. Go heavier than you think and when the soil breaks down it will become less compact over time and easier to pull weeds!
Maintenance is the word. You have to constantly work at it. Nice landscapes require work.
Once and for all? Ha. Get real. Thick mulch, cardboard first if you want to get fancy, but after that you have to maintain. I use a spray bottle with vinegar, and early in the season I mix a little round up with it, yeah I like to live on the edge. Depending on how much rain there is, I spend time bent over pulling and fluffing mulch. But I enjoy working in the garden. You should learn to enjoy it, or pour concrete if that’s what you want.
Try not to have so much visible mulch. Do dense plantings and add groundcovers.
Visible mulch = future home to weeds.
Until you get the plantings in, add a thicker layer of mulch. And pull the weeds every week, when it’s only a few. Don’t wait until you have a carpet of them, and they flower, and drop a zillion seeds.
Edit: It looks like you have a bunch of native plants in there. Are you doing it for pollinators? Some of our native bees burrow beneath leaves/dirt a couple inches during winter. Add leaves into the bed in fall. Don’t do more than 2-3 inches of mulch, or the native bees won’t be able to burrow.
Also be careful what kind of mulch you get, since they will become a solid impenetrable sheet if you aren’t regularly breaking them up. I like pine fines, but even natural undyed shredded hardwood is fine, just don’t let it turn into a solid sheet.
Any solution that requires routine doses of herbicide, is a bad one. If you don’t make your beds a weed magnet in the first place, you won’t need herbicide for this. Do dense plantings.
I’ve always found that you just have to keep up with the weeds amd then eventually they slow down.
Pull the weeds daily for a while. It doesn’t take that much time. Eventually there will be fewer weed plants dropping seeds and they’ll thin out.
As someone trying to help pollinators, I’d add some native ground cover that flowers to crowd out weeds but if you don’t want to add plants, 1) Weed 2) SEVERAL layers of cardboard that overlaps 3) 3-6” of mulch 4) water regularly the first few weeks to help the cardboard break down and make a home for happy earthworms
Did you try weeding?
The thing is we are far enough into the season that you have lost for this year. If you want it to be “easy” you start early and do it routinely.
you need inches depth of mulch, not a skim layer. also pack it where you don’t want the weeds. weeds need sunlight and air, like everything else.
but, you can’t “leave it and forget it”. take some time each week, two weeks, or three weeks and pull out the weeds. you only get out of it what you put into it.
I mulch with grass clippings. It mats down really well, keeps moisture in, and is a natural fertilizer. Doesn’t kill all the weeds but gets the majority.
4” of mulch, minimum.
Dig it out a few inches down, then apply thick cardboard covering the ground except where the plants are. Cover it very well. Then add a few inches of nuggets. I’ve had great success in areas with much thicker/bigger weeds.
Pre and, more importantly, timely post emergent apps.
You have to pull the weeds.
Go out every morning with a cup of coffee and a clear mind and pull a few out. Enjoy and repeat!
The previous owners of our home didn’t get on top of weed control, and on top of that, had bird feeders dropping seeds in various places. We have lots of landscaping and I had a hot mess on my hands when we moved in – if you threw huge thistles and cornstalks in with yours it would look about the same. Hoeing and mulch was ok but not effective. I finally hired a guy (who was working in our neighborhood anyway) to put down some pre-emergent for a few months during the growing season this year. Made all the difference in the world.
What makes you think that having a garden doesn’t include repetitive chores, in particular, weeding?
This problem is not going to go away. Even if you covered your yard with concrete you’d still have to weed.
“Once and for all” doesn’t exist in landscaping. You have to keep pulling weeds by their roots and covering with mulch to slow their propagation. It won’t just stop forever.
People let the weeds grow to seed and wonder why they keep coming back. 🤷♂️. Pull them, remulch, and visit the beds once a week and take a few minutes to pull them before they grow to seed the next generation. You’ll be amazed at what a little maintenance will do and the weeds will slow down over time
Weeding everyday. I have tried it all too. I just have my son do it alittle at a time and then I will weed it too.
“Under control once and for all”
There is no “once and for all” where nature is concerned – you keep clean beds by weeding them every week.
If you don’t want to weed your beds every week, then don’t have beds with big gaps in.
Anywhere there is bare earth with enough moisture and sunlight, there will be plants. End of story.
Get a hoe or plant something you like to look at in the gaps.