10 Common Weeds and Organic Methods to Remove Them

Summer is coming in just a few months. It’s a great time for the development of many creatures, including grass… and weeds! Nothing can make you angrier than looking at those little “enemies” taking away the order of your lawn, especially when you spent most of the time of year taking care of it. Sadly, your lawn cannot avoid the attack of weeds, since weed seeds come from different sources, and you cannot control it. What we can do is identify them and learn how to remove them in the safest way.

WHAT ARE THE MOST COMMON WEEDS?

By understanding your “enemies”, you can choose the best options to remove them. Here are 10 common weeds that most of us can find in every lawn

        1. Dandelions

We bet that you can recognize this weed almost immediately when you see it. We can say that Dandelions are the most common weed in the world. With the small yellow flower heads, it will turn to fluffy heads in a few days. Thanks to the creative design of Mother Nature, Dandelions spread fast and easy with the wind in warm seasons. Once they have become established in your lawn, their roots develop strong and fast in the soil, making them hard to kill.

    2. Violet

Just like Dandelions, it’s easy to recognize the purple-blue flowers with unique leaf shapes (heart-shaped) of Violet weeds. With its pretty look and good resistance, some of us choose to leave it alone. Unlike dandelions, which can spread quickly with the wind, Violets don’t spread fast and usually grow in small groups.

    3 . Clover

Maybe some of us believe that seeing a Clover is a sign of luck. However, it does not always bring good news for you. In fact, the presence of Clover is a sign of lacking nutrients and unhealthy soil. Clover is easy to be removed by hand, but if you don’t want to spend a half of a day removing it one-by-one, then you should choose a better solution.

  4. Crabgrass

Talking about the common weeds, we must not forget Crabgrass. Growing in the lawn with the flat and pointed leaves, Crabgrass is usually confused with the normal grass. Each summer, when the weather gets warmer and the wind is stronger, that is a great time for Crabgrass to grow and spread. Especially after watering or after rain, Crabgrass can spread quickly. If you don’t take action on time, it can invade your lawn.

5. Plantain

 

Plantain has oval-shaped leaves and light green flowers, so that you can identify it easily. Nobody wants plantain to appear in their lawns. Luckily, this weed cannot spread quickly and easily as Dandelions.

6. Bindweed

In fact, Bindweed has the pretty look with a white flower on top. If you see hundreds of small white flowers on your grass in the morning after a rainy day, then there is a high chance that they are Bindweed. Though its appearance makes some of us fall in love, its roots are actually taking nutrients from our grass. Therefore, you can’t just remove it by hand because it can grow back if you do not pull out all of its roots.

7. Yarrow

From May to midsummer, you may see Yarrow somewhere on your lawn. With the small white or yellow flowers, it can create a nice look for your lawn, but it also takes nutrients at the same time. Unlike the Bindweed, which is grown in high moisture level, Yarrow develops in dry and sandy conditions. The presence of Yarrow can consider as a sign of lack of nutrients, too.

8. Garlic Mustard

Garlic Mustard doesn’t have any relation with garlic. This weed is in the top 10 common weeds list and is also one of the hardest weeds to remove. Garlic Mustard can invade your lawn in a short period of time, once its roots have grown deeply into the soil.

9. Nutsedge or Nutgrass

Nutsedge looks really similar to the normal grass with a pointed leaves, but it is a little bit thicker and stiffer. Some of us can only recognize this weed when its yellow or brown flowers appear. Nutsedge also has a strong root system. Therefore, you should not remove it by hand; it would be better to prevent it or reseed the infected areas.

10. Canada Thistle

Canada Thistle is totally a stranger to your lawn, which means you can recognize it immediately due to the serrated shape of its leaves. Canada Thistle has a long root system and it can appear when your soil is at the poor condition.

ORGANIC METHODS TO REMOVE WEEDS

Herbicides are not always the first options to remove weeds in your lawn. There are plenty of reasons that could change your mind if you intend to use it. For example, a chemical product takes much time to vanish after applying. As the result, it could affect lawn and human health. We can always use other harmless ways to prevent and remove weeds. Let’s take a look.

1. Practicing lawn care properly

As you can see, most common weeds grow well when your lawn is in poor condition such as lack of nutrients, under or over-watered. Therefore, to prevent or remove weeds, you should, first, do the lawn care properly.

Depending on regional weather and type of grass, you should create a proper watering schedule. Normally, most grasses enjoy being watered deeply to strengthen its roots. But, try not to over or under water to create a suitable condition for weeds to grow.

Besides watering, you should fertilize your lawn regularly based on the demand it. Most lawns lack nitrogen, so, try to create a suitable fertilizing schedule for your lawn and ask professional advice if it’s needed.

Last but not least, please remember to mow your grass at the right height and with the right technique. Do not mow your lawn lower than 1/3 of its height. Well cut grass will grow up stronger and resist weeds better.

 2. Applying homemade herbicides

There are many simple tips that help you remove weeds without applying any chemical products:

1. By hand: If you want to do some exercise, then this could be a good activity. Remember when removing weeds, remove all their roots too, or they can grow back after a period of time.

2. Using vinegar/ boiling water: vinegar contains a high amount of acid. For humans, it’s totally safe. But for weeds, it’s like a poison. You can make a solution of vinegar and water. Put this solution in a sprinkler and pour it on weed spots. Be careful not to harm your grass with this solution. Besides that, boiling water can also kill the weeds with its heat too. You can pour the boiling water directly on the weed spot to remove them.

3. Salt: salt is one of the organic methods to remove weeds. When you leave rock salt at the weed spots, salt can help you to destroy them and prevent them from coming back again.

4. Using fire: there is no better organic method to treat weeds like using fire. You can rent a flame weeder from a local store easily, then use it to remove the weeds in your lawn. This device is safe enough to not create any incident to you and your neighbors. Meanwhile, weeds can be removed effectively.

Do not worry if you see the weeds occurring in your garden, because they cannot harm your lawn quickly. Just simply apply some simple methods above to remove them, and then you can save your lawn easily. When using these organic methods, you can not only protect the health of your family, but you can also save the environment. So, even though the herbicides are very convenient, I still think the organic methods are always the better solutions.

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Author Bio : Richard Clayton: I’m an owner of a small gardening shop. I love gardening, especially lawn care. I can spend all of my free time taking care of my lawn and discuss about lawn care experiences with my friends, who have the same hobby as me. www.lawnmowertips.com is a playground of us, where we can discuss everything about lawn care techniques.

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