What on earth do I do here
lse.hall22
Posts: 2
Hello all, first time poster and complete novice gardener.
We have a small back yard that is about 75% concreted over (very lumpy bumpy) and 25% lawn. It has been totally wild for a while. Yesterday I started with this:
and now it looks like this:
- not sure why it's flipped those around, but basically I've cleared a lot of it and stacked it in piles.
There'a some more to do near the road, but once I've done that I don't know what to do about all the roots. The weeds all come up through small cracks in the concrete so I can't get at them to dig them out. Replacing the concrete isn't an option as it's a rented house (sadly, as it's very uneven and quite dangerous.) What would you do to try to limit regrowth? I've left some green on each weed.
I think the only patch of soil is at the far end of the garden and I've not cleared that far yet, so it might have to be growing things in pots!
Any help appreciated, many thanks.
Posts
I think that's a tough task with those conditions! If it was me, I'd wait till there's enough new grwoth to apply weedkiller in those cracks. Try and pick a fairly still evening to apply it, and you may have to do it a few times over the next few months. Otherwise, clear what you can, and if there are plants/shrubs which you like, and want to keep, you can get some help here about ID ing and maintaining them.
It might be possible to repair the damaged concrete to give you a better surface, but it really comes down to what you want to spend if it's a rental property, unless you can get some assistance from the landlord about removing it and replacing with something more attractive and usable. That would be the ideal option.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Good morning and welcome to the Forum. First of all congratulations on all you've achieved so far. I would be tempted tp get some weed killer for all the cracks and crevices in the concrete. A good idea to grow things in pots too. If you were to move any time in the future you can take your 'garden' with you.
Good effort so far! I think pots are the way to go too, if you place them over the cracks that will go a long way to preventing weeds returning in those areas.
If you have a shovel you can scrape away the existing weeds and if necessary pour boiling water over them to get rid of them (You don't actually have to dump unknown chemicals all over your garden).
Other options, depending on the amount of effort/expense you want: cover the worst areas with a sheet to kill off the weeds (probably will take a good couple of weeks in situ to get rid of them); gravel over the entire garden. Obviously it's a rented place but you might still feel the expense isn't a bad investment, especially if you're there for a while.
You can buy a broom-like item with wire bristles for weeding in crevices though it won't kill the roots. But it's quicker and less toilsome than hand weeding. Think in terms of control rather than elimination because you never completely get rid of them - even your pots are going to need weeding.
I use this kind of patio knife, which is great for getting roots out of crevices.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/p/Garden-Patio-Weed-Weeding-Knife-Tool-Weeds-Moss-Remover-Paving-Groove/1705368278?iid=322473405482
You can often get bark chips for free from local tree surgeons.
Thank you all for your help! I've been out again today and done a bit more and we've got blackberries and elderflower growing which has made me a happy bunny.
I think that bark might be the way to go, but will have to have a look at costs. I don't really mind having weeds, it doesn't need to be pristine, just liveable, but they are a bit much at the moment!
You can get rubber bark, made from recycled tyres. I've no idea about the cost but it's nice enough to be on and should last much longer than real bark.
I'm glad you're happy to have blackberries!