Proactive Prevention Of Weeds In Your Yard This Spring
Since pulling weeds is one of the most tedious and frustrating parts of spring landscaping and gardening, you should know that there are some steps you can take to prevent the growth of a large percentage of your yard's weeds this spring, such as:
Smother Potential Weeds with Landscaping Products and Plants
The indigenous weeds in your yard are very resilient to eradication and vigilant in their regrowth and propagation. Try as you might, you cannot spray herbicide and expect that your yard will become weed-free. However, you can use landscaping products and natural plants to prevent the germination of new weeds and choke them out before they have a chance to grow and produce their own seeds.
Some examples of things you can use to prevent weed growth are:
- gravel and rocks
- synthetic mulch
- underlayment plastic sheeting
All of the areas in your yard that do not have trees or plants growing in them should have underlayment plastic sheeting placed down and then covered with either gravel, rocks, or synthetic mulch. The underlayment keeps the seeds from getting the necessary moisture and sunlight to germinate and sprout new weeds in your yard.
Spray Your Yard with a Pre-Emergence Herbicide
There are many pre-emergence herbicides on the market today that can be applied to problem weed areas just before the areas explode with their first spring growth. The timing of the application is very important and depends upon the common weed species in your local area.
Pre-emergence herbicides should be sprayed in all:
- driveway cracks
- walkway cracks
- patio grout areas
You should also spray it in areas that have not yet been covered with weed-smothering landscaping. The spray will not harm your other plants or pets. The sales clerk at your local hardware store will be able to advise you which product will work best in your area and when it should be applied.
For Additional Assistance with Out-of-Control Weeds
Finally, it is always better to prevent the growth of garden and landscape weeds than it is to have to pull them all out individually later. If the weeds in your garden look like they are going to take over after the next rain comes through, then you should contact a licensed landscaping contractor—like those found at http://snydersweedcontrol.com/ and other sites—to come and rectify the situation. Landscaping contractors are also knowledgeable about the products you can use to prevent weed growth and protect the clean look of your home's landscaping.
