By Felder Rushing

Gardening Columnist

Got weeds? Me too, and it’s a Sisyphean chore to keep them in check. 

I wish folks could see my face when they ask for and get my honest advice, and proceed to tell me I just don’t understand. I mean, this old gardener is tired of dragging a tarp full of weeds every spring and fall, especially in this humidity. 

But believe me, between decades of working with fellow horticulturists who tend botanic gardens as well as their own home gardens, if there is an easy way to control weeds, I think I would have learned it by now. 

It always boils down to four things: Mechanical pulling, hoeing, or tilling; mulching to reduce weed seeds from sprouting; and applying herbicides to kill those that are not easily controlled by the first two. Oh, and overlooking or learning to tolerate the ones that are not actually threatening the entire garden. 

The last one is the hardest for some folks; it’s like admitting defeat, as if we are somehow able to actually win anything other than temporary gains. But choosing your battles is not the same as giving up on the war.  

This applies especially to lawns, which for centuries have been maintained with just the old “mow what grows” approach. As long as what we call weeds grow kinda low—talking about clover, musky-scented ground ivy, dichondra, dollar weed, violets, and even winter dandelions and oxalis— and the lawn still looks flat and green from across the street, why get our knickers in a knot and budget in a bind? 

Unless we choose to live where others dictate how things must be done, we alone decide our level of tolerance; and worldwide, pollinator-friendly mixed-species lawns are considered just fine. As long as they are mowed as needed.

I spend most of my spring and fall weeding time pulling what I can and using a big screwdriver-like tool to pry up tree seedlings. Is it easy, or pleasurable? Nope – getting too old for grubbing around on my knees, and I don’t know anyone I can hire who does or even knows how to do this for me.  

My best veggie garden weeding tool is a triangular hoe, kept sharp with a flat file; I simply scrape along the top of the soil, nearly effortlessly compared with chopping harder, which uncovers more weed seeds. Sounds old school, but it works – as long as the file is used regularly.   

As for mulch, though pine straw is inexpensive and readily available, I go with bark or shredded wood because it is easier to spread an inch or two from bags plus it feeds the soil as it decomposes. This keeps most weed seeds from sprouting, and even works in small vegetable and herb gardens. 

I pry tree seedlings out, no problem, but poison ivy, Virginia creeper, smilax, Asiatic jasmine, and others that come back from roots or stem pieces are too pernicious, and I am not above carefully squirting or brushing them with a little herbicide.

Can’t get into which herbicides here, because there are so many products and brands; however, I honestly do not think home concoctions are worth the time and effort, going instead with tried-and-true herbicides labeled for use in gardens. The keys are in reading labels and careful application. MSUCARES.com has a search box for more detail on lawn, landscape, or garden weed control.     

Anyway, between persistent pulling and using my pry bar, scraping with a sharp hoe, mulching, an occasional herbicide squirt, and overlooking a few wildflowers, my garden is mostly ready for summer. 

 

Felder Rushing is a Mississippi author, columnist, and host of the “Gestalt Gardener” on MPB Think Radio. Email gardening questions to rushingfelder@yahoo.com.