I use Round-Up every 4 weeks but it is not working. Please Help.
Question
I have slightly more than ½ acre of bare ground (was a horse riding area) where within I have two 2500 sq ft (50 x 50) vegetable gardens. I use a weed spray (round-up) outside the gardens about every 4 weeks which only barely (at best) keeps up with the new growth. The weeds overwhelm me in the gardens though and before mid-season it is a losing battle. Presently the gardens are tilled for the winter. My thoughts are to put down drip lines under a sheet of visqueen next year to try to win this battle of the weeds. Any other suggestions for the gardens and non-garden areas?
Answer
Nobody loves having weed over take any garden, however weed are easy to control with a little time and some work. In the garden, I like to take my hoe and walk down each row once every three days, hoeing out any weed that has germinated, before it has a chance to become well established.
On a acre garden this take about an hour to do. I walk my garden on days that are evenly divided by 3, 3rd 6th 9th ect. This prevents the weed problem from becoming a losing battle. I will begin, usually about the last week of June to mulch my garden with grass clipping every week.
I will weed a section very well the day before mowing the lawn. When I mow, I will spread the clippings about 2 inches thick next to the plants and in the walk ways to prevent weed from growing for the rest of the season.
In the fall after I have cleaned the garden off, I will till in the grass clipping to help build the soil. You can use black visqueen to cover the garden to prevent weeds. Plan on using a thick mill plastic (6 or above) so you can walk in the garden without tearing the thinner plastic. Also the thicker plastic will block all of the light thus stopping germination of the weed seeds.
Three mil black plastic is so thin you can see some light through it.. Using drip lines under the plastic is a great way of watering the garden. remember to let the system run long enough to deep soak your plants and check for the moisture level before watering the next time. Plastic mulch will help prevent moisture loss from evaporation.
Mike Stanton
Zamzows Nampa
1518 Caldwell Blvd Nampa Idaho
mstanton@zamzows.com