Weeds in the Garden Patch?
My grandparents farmed most of their lives, raising large vegetable gardens and canning as much of the produce as they could. My husband and I, too, have raised vegetables, but because of the limited size of city lots our early gardens were quite small by comparison. It was easy to keep them looking neat and free of weeds. After a few years we moved to the country and with more land the natural inclination was to have a bigger vegetable garden as well. I was ambitious, shopped all the seed catalogs, and wanted to raise everything--everything I had been growing plus many things I had seen growing only in the catalog! That first large garden was a real disaster! The weeds completely took over. Although we did manage to find some potatoes at the end of the summer, I never did find the okra and the soy beans (so the kids could eat roasted soy beans, of course). However, we did discover some interesting little pliable white eggs that turned out to be snake eggs--much to the kids' delight. What a learning experience! Many times we have laughed about that garden. But each year after that I learned a little more about managing a larger vegetable garden and how to cope with weeds. I think we finally won my dad's respect as gardeners.
Last week a reader wanted to know how to beat "the grass from Hell" and rid the vegetable garden of it forever. Of course, we know he is referring to everybody's enemy--crabgrass. I was told once that ducks will pick crabgrass out of a garden. Can anyone in Cyberland substantiate that statement? I can't imagine that ducks would stop with the crabgrass! I prefer not to use chemicals on the soil in which I grow vegetables, so I resort, of course, to one or more of the following:
Weed Control
Hand Weeding-- O.K. for small areas and young weeds.
Hoeing--O.K. for annual weeds, again in smaller gardens, but perennial weeds will sprout up again from the roots.
Roto-tilling--O.K. for preparing the soil for planting. It destroys weeds fast but not for long because weed seeds will be brought to the surface and will soon sprout. Also, tilling chops up the roots of perennial weeds and each piece will sprout to life again--just like the broom in The Sorcerer's Apprentice!
Mulching--GREAT! It is relatively low-effort and the only way to go in my opinion. Using newspaper or cardboard (black plastic is a pain to deal with during fall clean-up and is bad for landfills) with grass, straw, and leaves on top will block out the light and air the seeds need to grow. The ones that do poke through are easy to pull. The mulch will help conserve soil moisture. Also, this kind of mulch decomposes over the winter and adds to the soil.
Everyone recognizes crab grass and dandelions, but to learn what kind of weeds you are growing, check into Weed Images and Descriptions. It isn't too late to mulch and save yourself some frustration. But if the weeds have already overwhelmed you and you're ready to throw in the towel, think on the positive side!
Weeds are green, grow without planting, and provide a quick cover for soil left barren by construction projects, fire, etc.
Weeds provide a natural habitat for all kinds of creatures--insects, snakes, rabbits, etc.
Weeds are a foodsource for birds.
Weeds may actually produce some attractive fillers for dried winter bouquets.