weeds in garden

[rcrcomputing]

I read about big gardens and think to myself, how in the world do you keep it weeded. My garden is not huge, but is nice. So, how bout some hints on keeping it weeded?

 

[Birdman]

Hoe Hoe Hoe and no I am not Santa. No spray for me just get all I can and don't sweat the rest of them. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[Freds]

This was being discussed when I was asking about planting corn. It seems some people that have walk behind tillers run those between the rows and others have cultivator attachments that can be set so they don't rip up what you're trying to grow. You drive the tractor over your rows and the cultivator rips up the weeds, but you can only do this until the corn gets so high. By then it is established and will help block sunlight from helping the weeds along, so you may be OK not to weed after that point.
At least that's what I gathered. Once I start my garden I may try to take some tines out of my landscape rake and see if that works similar.

 

[PineRidge]

Cultivate around the plants using one of the small tillers. (Mantis)

Plant you veggies on 3' centers and run a Troy Built tiller between the rows.

When it comes to sweet corn once it reaches 6" sow some clover between the corn plants. It will add nitrogen to the ground which the corn can use while maturing and it will form a thick carpet that will make weeds harder to compete.

Or let your neighbor grow the veggies and then wait until he has gone to bed for the night to do your shopping. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[bdog]

If you are not growing Corn - Treflan. It is a preemergent herbiceide often used on commercial vegetable operations. It must be incorporated into the soil. Till the garden, spray it with treflan, then lightly till again. My garden is 40x15, and I have not had a single weed yet.

 

[thingy]

If your going to raise a garden big enough to be called a garden,,,you got to get a walk behind tiller,,can't do without it,,,or a mule and cultivator,,,,,some of those bigger commercial type gardens,do alot of raised beds,,covered in somekind of plastic,,with irragation water lines,underneath,,and they have all the equipment to make that doable,,,or,,they just grow alot,,and get most of it,,a few weeds don't hurt a thing,,thing is,,you got to keep the weeds down untill plants get ahead of weeds,,after your plants get up there some,,some weeds won't hurt much,,this time of year I don't want any weeds,,but come about the 1st part of july or so,,let em grow...thingy

 

[fractal]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I read about big gardens and think to myself, how in the world do you keep it weeded. My garden is not huge, but is nice. So, how bout some hints on keeping it weeded? )</font>
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Lay down plastic and punch holes through it for the seeds.

Lay down mulch as the plants grow.

Weed daily. Those hula-hoes work great when the ground is kept soft and moist.

or do like I do and forget about it until they are so high that you can't water. I had a crew of 4 pulling weeds for 8 hours out of a third of an acre avocado orchard. They pulled 2500 pounds of weeds according to the scale at the transfer station.

 

[Egon]

Do a lot of thinking about easy speedy mechanical methods.

Then get down on your hands and knees and get to work!! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Egon

 

[HRS]

First, you have to get the mental part right. You are gardening because you like playing in the soil. Only garden a plot that you can comfortably work. If you turn it into a job, you just messed up.

Second, it's your garden. leave all the chemicals possible alone. If you want to eat stuff laced with all types of poisons, just go down to the local grocery.

Thirdly, have a tiller handy. They are excellent for the middles. And as far as the centers are concerned, pull weeds once the ground is moist, after a rain or watering. They come up very easily then. I've also found that if you let the weeds go ahead and grow about 3 inches tall, it makes pulling them much easier. After your plants get their heads well above the weeds, don't worry about them so much.

Finally, use weeper hoses. This waters your desired plants and lets the unwanted weeds just on the outside of the centers bake in the scorching summer heat. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Have fun. There's work to be done.

 

[AutoUnionTypeC]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Second, it's your garden. leave all the chemicals possible alone. If you want to eat stuff laced with all types of poisons, just go down to the local grocery. )</font>

I agree with that sentiment. I think you’ve gotten good advice already the only item I might add is a stirrup hoe like this one.
Invaluable.

 

[billbill1]

I like to mulch around tomatoes, peppers, cantilope, watermellon, and zuccinni with grass clippings from the yard. This keeps weeds under control and the ones that do grow will pull out much easier. This really helps hold moisture around the plants. I've had mowers with grass catchers and currently use a lawn sweeper behind my 6' finish mower. (it's only 38" wide but still collects some of the clippings) In the fall I till it under and it composts by the next spring.

 

[Bird]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I like to mulch around tomatoes, peppers, cantilope, watermellon, and zuccinni with grass clippings from the yard )</font>

I didn't use a grass catcher on my mower so I didn't have the grass clippings, but I did have neighbors who gave me big round bales of oat straw which was great for that purpose.

 

[TBAR]

I am really fighting this problem with my garden. I have plowed and plowed and plowed before during and after planting and stilll have LOTS of weeds. Last weekend I went out to the property to work in the field and it looked like flash rust on steel. There was 100% coverage in weeds!!!

Plowing between the rows is no problem. Its hoeing the rows that is a hugh pain!!! I am considering taking some round up, putting it on a sponge and spot applying it to the weeds in the rows.

My Field


Tbar

 

[rcrcomputing]

Okey dokey. I will buy a hula (stirrup) hoe for my hoe to use in the garden. I use a walk behind tiller between the rows. For years I have added peat to the soil in the garden. That makes weeding MUCH easier and of course eventually composts. Of course, now that I have a tractor, I am building piles of leaves (thank you, box blade), and top soil from the forests areas. I've added firtilizer and am hoping it'll compost for me.

I'm considering using roundup at the end of the season in hopes it will slow some weeds down.
I've a killer garden for growing things, but the weeds grow good to.

BTW, I've got 5' tomato plants already. I planted like a month early. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[thingy]

Yeah,,some spots in my garden cover up in weeds very quick,while other parts don't,,,,weed seed is the thing,[I think],if you can keep some weeds from going to seed,,it helps,,plus if you plant a cover crop of winter rye,in fall,,by first tilling and than planting,the rye,will grow fast and smother out most weeds,than till it under in spring,plus,,every thing you put on your garden with seeds may grow,,horse manure,grass clippings,chicken litter,etc,,,new gardens spots are hard to get to where most of the old weed seeds are history,,,,but I wouldn't use a herbacide,,not that it would do great harm if directions were followed,,just don't believe in using that stuff in my garden,,plus,,herbacide is not a perminate salution,,,I got to spray my gravel parking area two - three times a year,,it just keeps coming back,,and that ground is not near as good at growing weeds as a tilled garden. thing

 

[EastTexFrank]

It depends on what type of garden you are talking about. In the vegetable garden, I use an idea I got from Bird years ago. I plant my rows at least 6' apart, sometimes closer to 8', depending on what's growing, and I run the tractor and tiller between the rows. It's the easiest and fastest way of doing it that I've found. Trouble is, as you till the weeds you also till in the weed seeds so it is a never ending process. I use a hand hoe or a Mantis mini tiller between plants. If possible, never let the weeds run to seed. If you do, you are only storing up trouble for years to come. There's an old English country saying that, "If you let it run to seed, for 7 years will you weed" and I think it's true. I must admit, I do occasionally use a hand held, pump up sprayer and Round-up. Some weeds and grasses you can't kill by tilling, it takes chemicals. Mulch and soaker hoses also help restrict weeds.

When it comes to a big yard, I use pre-emergent in spring and I spray ... usually twice sometimes 3 times a year. I don't think anyone in their right mind is going to try to hand weed a 4 acre yard although I do hand pull some when I'm walking around. It makes me feel good. For the flower beds I use a pre-emergent/fertillizer combo in the spring and hand pick any stranglers that come up after that although I have been known to spray in there too, especially if there are vines involved.

I'm surrounded by pastures, one of which gets mowed maybe once a year, if at all, so there are no shortage of weed seeds blowing in my direction. I'm all for making weeding as fast, easy and painless as possible so any more good ideas that you guys have .... I'm listening.

 

[Bird]

I've never used one of those stirrup type hoes and all the regular old hoes I could find had too big a blade to suit me. So I bought one, put it in the vise, and with my little air saw (reciprocating saw), cut half the blade off, then went to the bench grinder and ground a new edge on it.

 

[Egon]

Bird;

We used to have one on the farm made from a three tined pitch fork with the middle tooth cut off. The blade was only about 3/8 inch wide.

Egon

 

[DocHeb]

My favorite is the Swan-Neck Hoe. I use it in the vertical position more than the horizontal position.

 

[Bird]

I've never seen one quite like that, Chris. It looks good. I had what I guess they call a "classic" garden hoe with a 4" x 6" blade, and after I made a 2" x 6" blade out of it, I liked it just fine.