We’re celebrating June with gardening! Keeping your garden happy, healthy, and free of harmful weeds is an essential part of the experience. Whether you have a decorative garden of colorful flowers or an edible garden, here are some tips to keep it weed-free.
Identify Invasive Weeds
Most of the time we think of weeds as anything growing in our garden that we didn’t want there in the first place. But some wild plants are harmless and others are much more destructive in your garden. How do you identify invasive weeds that need to be removed? The first step is education. This website offers several identification resources. Of course, plants that are choking out trees or causing damage to your home such as English Ivy, may need to be cut back. You may also want to eliminate plants like poison ivy to protect yourself, children, and pets.
Tips for Weeding Your Garden
Here are six tips to help you keep your garden tidy:
- Minimize soil disturbance when working in the garden.
- Use natural mulch to keep weeds at bay.
- Pull weeds when they’re wet, but cut them off at the roots when they’re dry.
- Remove the heads.
- Plan spacing to choke out weeds.
- Water the plants, not the weeds.
You can read more about these six ideas here.
The Best Garden Tools
An important key to effective weeding is to have the right tools in your toolbox. If you’re only tool is a hammer, all your problems look like nails. The same is true for weeding. You may think a shovel will get you there, but there is more to weeding than just brute force. Make sure you have these tools on hand:
- Gloves
- Garden trowel
- Garden fork
- Spade
- Garden hose
- Watering can
Organic vs. Natural Weed Solutions
One of our most significant values here at GoPrime Mortgage in West Asheville is to promote natural and organic solutions. We believe that we’re responsible for the earth’s health, including the small patch we have at home. The best natural weed solution is to stay ahead of the problem by manually weeding your garden regularly. Consider investing in a fun idea like a goat service if you have a large property and too many weeds. A goat handler will bring their herd to your yard to eat away the weeds you don’t want – it’s a benefit to everyone! Avoid the harsh chemicals at the big box home and garden stores if you need to use a liquid weed killer, instead try using a handmade solution with white vinegar.
Are you ready to buy a home with a garden and start your own garden? Call Zack Adam to get preapproved today!
