Keep on top of the invasion.
The definition of a weed is essentially a ‘plant growing where you don’t want it to be growing’, and most are unsightly nuisances that wreak havoc on all our hard work and preparation if left to their own devices. They can take valuable nutrients from the soil, strangle plants and clog up machinery.
Although you can’t completely eliminate weed intrusion, there are things you can do to alleviate the backbreaking chores needed to keep them under control. And here we have a two-pronged approach:
1) At the forefront in our armoury is ‘prevention’ – acting before the weeds appear.
2) Secondly, dealing with those that get past the preventative measures taken.
Your approach to weed control will depend on the type of weeds you are dealing with. Weeds can be classed as being either annual or perennial.
Annual
An annual plant is one that completes its entire lifecycle in one growing season, from seed to maturity. It spreads by producing seeds that lie dormant in the ground until the following season. Control comes in the form of killing the weed before it has the chance of seeding. This can be done through physically pulling them from the ground, hoeing, or using a translocated or contact herbicide.
Perennial
Perennial weeds live indefinitely, surviving through at least three growing seasons. During the non-growing winter months, the plant survives in a state of ‘dormancy’ in the form of an underground root. The root contains everything the plant requires to begin growth the following season. Control is best achieved by physically digging up the entire plant, including the root. Where this is not possible a translocated weedkiller can be used.
Weedkillers
This story is from the March 2019 edition of The Gardener.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the March 2019 edition of The Gardener.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Bordering on food aggression!
The economy, fires, drought, Russians, fuel prices, and politicians, dictated what we ate in my youth. The only exception was that Eskom worked...
Quarantining new koi fish
Give your new koi the best start
The beauty of BEGONIAS
For endless colour and a garden that looks vibrant throughout the seasons, these are your go-to choices.
Good BUGS
In a garden where creatures are free to prey on each other, the biological cycle plays out dramatically...
Heroines of HORTICULTURE
This year at the Chelsea Flower Show, women took centre stage in the Great Pavilion.
3 hasty shrubs
Most gardeners who plant new shrubs will tell you that they have a great impatience to see them grow fast and flower well. All plants need time to settle in before creating a performance, but some do it faster than others...
GOING VERTICAL
If you're not making use of the vertical space in your garden, you're missing out on a huge and essential part of not only design, but also space saving. Space is at a premium in all gardens, but particularly urban gardens where choice is limited. Going vertical is the best way to make use of 'empty' space and improve your design at the same time. It's a win-win.
Delights to DISCOVER
A horticultural masterpiece that just keeps on giving...
Purple Cone Flower
Echinacea purpurea is a flowering perennial herb that grows easily from seed and produces large pinkish purple daisy-like flowers with a reddish-brown central cone that attracts bees and other pollinators.
Divine combination
We trolled the streets, studying neighbourhood pavements and accessed gardens (with permission) to see what's growing and found red vygies and blue felicias in a late winter-colour-clinch with pretty rocks...