Tips for dealing with weeds in the garden?

[imq707s]

We decided to plant a garden this year....much bigger than we have ever planted before. It's 25x50ft, and we have it full of tomatoes, zucchini, peas, squash, potatoes, cabbage...you name it.
So far this summer it's been going great, producing like crazy.

The one thing that we are constantly fighting is the weeds. My wife is out there just about every night picking weeds, and on the weekends I'll get out there and help to. It seems like no matter how many weeds we pick, they just keep coming back. I've tried getting in there with a small tiller and going in between the rows to eat up the weeds, but that only works for about a week...then they all start coming back.

Is there any trick to getting the weeds out, and keeping them out......besides spraying weed killing all over the garden? I don't want to start doing that.

 

[lynnmcmahan]

Sharp hoe and get with it when the weeds are small and tender. Power tillers are easier and make the middles look nice, for a few days. Remember that a tiller will bring weed seed to the surface and here you go again. Some weeds like nut sedge and cogan grass drive me crazy. When my garden plays out I usually spray with golsophate(eraser...cheap version of roundup).
Some folks(me included) get carried away with seed catalogs and plant more than they can handle.
To much garden can turn a fun project sour in a hurry. Almost forgot, if you live in a weather zone that allows fall/winter garden you will be mostly weed, bug and heat free.
In summary; weeds are here to stay and just a part of the gardening process.

 

[jsm]

I am fighting the same battle. Just plowed up my new garden this spring. My neighbor across the road suggested multiple diskings. Disk, let some weeds grow in, disk them under. After the garden is done, that is. Mine is done for the summer, just disked it up this weekend. Plan to do this a couple more times until fall garden time.

 

[3waycross]

Try mulching with straw or grass clippings. Plastic mulch works good around tomatoes

 

[LRTX1]

I seen a big difference in weeds when I switched to drip tape irrigation. Years when you get plenty of rain it wont matter. But keeping water and fertilizer out of the middles helps keep the weeds slowed down.

 

[SPH]

I bag my lawn clippings and put them between rows and pants. Keeps the weeds down and makes good mulch material. I'll till it up in the fall so it decomposes even more over the winter.

 

[skyhightree1]

I have 2 gardens one is almost 3 acres and other is 40x72 personally I use a cultivator behind the tractor in which I also use to make the rows. If you have a farmall tractor with cultivators that works too.. I gotta cut my corn out my spring garden and disc that stop but i just planted beans and more cucumbers and pumpkins. The cultivator will make your life easier between the rows and if you space your plants easier to chop weeds and grass

 

[3waycross]

I bag my lawn clippings and put them between rows and pants. Keeps the weeds down and makes good mulch material. I'll till it up in the fall so it decomposes even more over the winter.

Just make sure you don't use lawn clippings from a lawn that has been treated with weed and feed!

 

[3waycross]

I have 2 gardens one is almost 3 acres and other is 40x72 personally I use a cultivator behind the tractor in which I also use to make the rows. If you have a farmall tractor with cultivators that works too.. I gotta cut my corn out my spring garden and disc that stop but i just planted beans and more cucumbers and pumpkins. The cultivator will make your life easier between the rows and if you space your plants easier to chop weeds and grass

That's not a garden it's a farm :lol2:

 

[skyhightree1]

LOL true I am addicted to growing gardens lol

 

[skyhightree1]

My solution to weeding gardens lol

 

[tripleBfarms]

Try mulching with straw or grass clippings. Plastic mulch works good around tomatoes

Yep, I roll out a sheet of plastic before I plant tomatoes, then just cut a small hole, and set the plant. In between the rows, you can roll out plastic too, or old carpet, whatever will keep out the sun. It only takes 3 or 4 days to kill whatever weed it is. Beats a hoe.

 

[juliapeter007]

Technically a weed in the wrong place is just a plan. It does not want another factory seedling, or you really want to eradicate a more malignant and invasive can. You totally will not be able to stop the weeds from the pop-up, while, however, they have grown a little place there is a way to make sure.

Six effective tips to deal with weeds in the garden are:

- Let's lying his weed
- Mulch, mulch, mulch
- Weed weed is good
- His head drop
- Spacing between plants in the minds of
- Water plants you want, you have no weed

 

[ga.prime]

That was kind of random and hard to follow, 007. Is that poetry? Alternate to your plan- roto-till weeds, hoe weeds, pull weeds by hand.

 

[skyhightree1]

That was kind of random and hard to follow, 007. Is that poetry? Alternate to your plan- roto-till weeds, hoe weeds, pull weeds by hand.

I thought so too.. then shrugged it off as to 007 was smoking some weed when posted that.

 

[CottageFarm]

I'm guessing translation issues. I'm thinking English isn't her/his native language.

I missed this thread originally, but for next time... There is no magic bullet. It's a pain no matter what you do.
I agree with mulching between rows and around plants. straw, grass clippings, shredded paper, whatever you have. Layers of newspaper under the mulch also work well to help conserve moisture in the soil and act as a barrier for weed seeds from the straw or grass clipping. Ditto also to 3ways comment about clipping treated with weed/feed or any other type of herbicide. A tiller or cultivator do work well between rows, but as mentioned, they will also bring seeds to the surface where germination conditions might be more friendly.
Also agree drips are wonderful for putting water only where you need it and also help eliminate the favorable disease conditions you get with overhead watering, especially with tomatoes and cucurbits.

 

[ga.prime]

That was kind of random and hard to follow, 007. Is that poetry? Alternate to your plan- roto-till weeds, hoe weeds, pull weeds by hand.

I thought so too.. then shrugged it off as to 007 was smoking some weed when posted that.

:lol2: I'd love to see a pic of 007's garden. Here's a pic of part of my garden from back in June using my weed management plan.

 

[bbirder]

:lol2: I'd love to see a pic of 007's garden. Here's a pic of part of my garden from back in June using my weed management plan.

When do you have time to take care of maintenance on your avatar? :banana: :banana:

 

[ga.prime]

When do you have time to take care of maintenance on your avatar? :banana: :banana:

:lol2: It's not easy!

 

[skyhightree1]

. There is no magic bullet. It's a pain no matter what you do.
quote]

I disagree my big garden is 2-2.5 acres and takes me 5 mins to cultivate the rows lol