Weeds...

Weeds.... Almost every yard gets them. They are mostly a pain. Getting rid of them is not easy and usually requires the liberal use of chemicals. I am generally opposed to using chemicals in the yard of any kind.

I recently found through Pinterest a very effective way to naturally kill weeds. Now, this method is only effective in areas where you intend to kill all the green you spray.  If your weeds are in the lawn, the grass around the weeds will also die.

We have a back yard devoid of any grass. There was grass planted there when we moved in, but I don't think it was a suitable variety for a shaded, yet hot and humid area. It died little by little. Now we have what I refer to as a lovely "dog scaped" yard... There is nothing of any real value growing on the ground. It is mostly dirt, leaves and areas of rock and gravel.

Each year I get some kind of weed like ground cover which I do not know the name of. It's actually kind of pretty. Gets little flowers in it and grows nicely dense and doesn't seem to mind being walk on my man or beast. I'd leave it to grow if it weren't for the "other" things that inevitably start growing in there as well. The space it to large to want to weed the weeds! So I go for total kill! Nicely of course...

Since the yard has dogs in it throughout the day, any type of chemical is out the question for me. What I found to use is awesome! Cheap, easy and totally pet safe!!!

It's a simple solution of cheap white vinegar, Epsom salts and dish soap.  

1 Gallon Vinegar

1/2 Cup Epsom Salt

Squirt of Dish Soap (I use Dawn)

I bought one of these last year and SOOOOO glad I did..

I just put all the ingredients in the container, screw on the top, which locks in place when not being pumped, and give it a swirl. I usually let it sit for a few minutes to let the Epsom salts dissolve, but I don't find this takes a long time.. just swirl a bit and you are good to go! All you have to do is pump pressure in the tank and then spray. I find this one to work great! If I can pump it... ANYONE can! It sprays for a nice long while before needing to be re-pumped.

I usually make two gallons at a time so I can do the whole yard. You want to do this on a day when it's going to be sunny. I spray in the morning and then leave it.

Your yard WILL smell like vinegar! This goes away after a day or two and is only really noticeable during the warmer part of the day.

The first photo is of the lovely ground cover before being sprayed. Yes, it looks kind of cool, but a closer look would show all kinds assorted evil just dying to burst forth.

This is after only ONE day! I will probably do this again in a week or so depending on how well I got everything in round one. It usually takes me more than one time, but twice is about all I normally have to do to get everything under control.

I have one consideration with this process and I time it so to make less of an issue out of it is... soap of any kind will kill bugs/insects etc. This is usually a good thing, BUT we use beneficial nematodes in our yard as a very effective flea and insect control. Any pesticide include insecticidal soaps will damage the microscopic little guys! 

I am doing this weed treatment BEFORE putting out new nematodes for the year. We usually refresh them yearly. Since winter is relatively mild here, we probably have a reasonable amount that survive the cooler weather, but I like to add new ones just to be on the safe side. We will be adding our nematodes in the next month or so.

I will do a whole post on beneficial insects soon. We use a variety of fun stuff!!

That is all for today! Till next time...