Weeding My Boarders
turleeey
Posts: 4
Hi All,
I have limited gardening experience but don't mind graft and long for a beautiful garden!
my first problem is; our boarders are relatively new but seem to be home to a lot of weeds, i try to 'weed' but the weeds return almost straight away [1-2 weeks]. Would you advise removing our plants/shrubs/bushes (they're quite small so not a big task) and treating the soil? If so how do I go about it i.e. What tools and products should I use?
My second problem; I had my lawn relaid last year and I thought I was paying for high grade turf, turns out I wasn't and the laying wasn't of a high standard either - it's up and down, dips here and there, weeds, different colours, patchy etc etc. All I want is a green consistent lawn, what is the best way to get the best out of what I have?
Thanks
Sam
Posts
Hi Sam. You will always have weeds so taking out your shrubs is only making work for yourself. Hoeing your soil regularly is one answer. This stops weeds making any progress. Don't wait til you see the weeds just hoe. As for the lawn - I would have whoever laid the lawn back to sort out those problems especially to answer the question about the quality of the turf.
Hoe before you need to hoe and you'll never need to hoe eh LB?
Definitely get the lawn layers back and ask them what their game is.
Just to put another view. I never hoe, it destroys the seedlings I want and also not good for roots of some shallow rooting shrubs.
Agree weeding is a forever job though, get the ground covered with plants you do want and it reduces.
In the sticks near Peterborough
If you mulch (google it!) the borders it will not only help to improve the soil structure and keep moisture in so you don't need to water so much, mulch will also suppress weeds. Another good way of keep weeds down is to try and pack your borders out with plants so weeds can't get in edgeways. If you want to fill borders cheaply, go for plants that will wander freely, such as Geranium, or Vinca Minor (aka Periwinkle), both of which provide ground cover and then you can plant amongst it. Never let weeds flower - you don't want more seed dispersed into the gardens. Hoeing is also good, and to do it on a nice hot sunny day. You breaks up the top few inches of the soil and it looses it up so weeds lose their foothold, and expose roots to the air, which will kill them off.
Sorry to hear about your lawn - sounds like a duff job. You need to get them back in to review their work. What they've done doesn't sound like good job or good turf. Any reputable supplier would not have weeds growing in their turf.
That's where I'm going wrong! I need more plants.
I'll be at the garden centre if anyone's looking for me.
Thanks guys. Just had a cup of tea and now to hoe the borders!
Say if I were to go about fixing up the lawn instead of engaging the lawn layers... Are there any suggestions?
Weeds are plants too, you know - so you've got more than enough
I really don't like bare soil so I fill up with plants. If they 'do' they 'do' and if they don't I just take a division from another plant. Perennial geraniums are great and very forgiving of rough treatment.
To fix up the lawn you need to weed and feed it which, unless you want to do lots of hard work, is going to have be a chemical solution. Use a proprietary brand of lawn feed and weed. I prefer to use a liquid form, rather than granules but its what you prefer. Be careful if you're using a weeding solution where you have children and/or pets. Ideally you should not allow both on to the lawn until its washed into the soil through action of rain or watering, so if you do it when you know its going to rain in a day or so, then that's ideal. You also need to be careful if you put out any pets on your lawn, such as rabbits or guinea pigs - they won't be able to go out for weeks or even a month or so until all the weedkiller has flushed out of the soil and cut the grass for at least 3/4 times. I'm sure people will say they put weed/feed on their lawns all the time and allow children/pets on it, but can't be too cautious in my view. Just read the label to see whats in it and you'll understand.