If you’ve ever owned a home with a front or rear lawn, you know how painstaking it can be to encourage quality grass growth and eliminate weeds during the summer months. Not only do they look awful, but weed growth can lead to an array of further complications, including garden encroachment and long-term damage to an otherwise healthy lawn. The best way to prevent weeds from taking your lawn hostage is by removing them the moment they become visible, preventing the spread and limiting the overall damage.

In this article, we’re going to explore the ins and outs of weed removal, discuss how to kill weeds on your lawn and ensure that you have the beautiful garden and greenery your home deserves.

Pull Them By The Roots

Most homeowners will remove weeds by simply reaching down and tearing them out. Although this will help in the short term by preventing the number of visible weeds on the surface, the reality is that the weed roots are still alive and well under the soil. This will result in weeds continually popping up, no matter how often you tear them away. The best way to kill weeds on the lawn, and to ensure that you’re removing the entire weed and preventing a replacement head from sprouting, take the time to grab each weed at its base and pull slowly and steadily to allow for the roots to work themselves away from the soil.

Pull Them By The Roots
kneeling tools

Use Proper Tools

As mentioned above, it can be tempting to simply grab at weeds with your hands. The reality is, that this will be an incredibly inefficient and ineffective way of managing your weed issues. To ensure that comfortably, safely, and successfully removing the weeds and their roots, you’ll want to take advantage of the following tool-set:

  1. Kneeling tools – Particularly useful for those who like to get down into the grass or garden bed, short-handled kneeling tools work well for scraping up surface weeds and getting into harder-to-reach spots. Some of the most popular kneeling tool options include the Claw Rake, Hook Neck, Angled Hand Hoe, and Hand Shovels. Each of these tools is designed for a separate purpose, and so you will benefit from having as many as possible in your arsenal.
  2. Standing tools – Particularly useful for those interested in removing multiple weeds and once and remaining in an upright position, long-handled standing tools work well for eliminating many weeds in an efficient and effective way. Some of the most popular standing tool options include the Long-Handled Hoe, Grip-and-Pull Weeders, and Prong-Grips. Each of these tools is designed for a separate purpose, and so you will benefit from having as many as possible in your arsenal.

Herbicides

Aside from simply pulling weeds on a daily or weekly basis, you can take advantage of herbicides to assist in the management of growth. Herbicides (otherwise known as weed killers) are toxic substances that can be applied to weeded areas, working to kill the weeds prior to growth or spread. Although a much easier option than hand-plucking, there are a series of pros and cons that must be considered prior to herbicide application, including the impact it can have on your non-weed greenery and the environment.

 kill the weeds by herbicides
spraying or pulling weeds to prevent seeds from germinating

Prevent Seeds from Germinating

It won’t be necessary to spray or pull weeds if you simply prevent them from growing in the first place. A pre-emergent seed application will dissolve into the soil and create a barrier around weed seeds, preventing them from being able to grow or spread. Note that a single pre-emergent seed application will last up to 12 weeks, so you’ll need to complete several applications per year to prevent growth.

Using Heat

If you’re facing a situation in which several large swaths of weeds have taken over your lawn or garden, it may just be time to burn them out. With the help of a weed burner, which is effectively a propane-powered blow-torch, you’ll be able to scorch the surface weeds and badly damage their roots. Be sure to only scorch the weeds as much as necessary so as to not start a fire.

burning weeds by using heat
Landscape Fabric for removing weeds from lawn

Try Landscape Fabric

It won’t be necessary to spray or pull weeds if you simply prevent them from growing in the first place. A pre-emergent seed application will dissolve into the soil and create a barrier around weed seeds, preventing them from being able to grow or spread. Note that a single pre-emergent seed application will last up to 12 weeks, so you’ll need to complete several applications per year to prevent growth.

Weed When Soil is Wet and Soft

To increase the likelihood of your efforts extracting the entire weed and root, it’s best to weed when the soil is wet and soft. Whether it be following rainfall or a watering session, taking the time to remove weeds from wet soil will significantly increase the likelihood of you having a successful weed removal session that prevents future growth and spread.

best time extracting weed is wet and soft

Closing

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