weed help

[yellow strawberry]

just want a bit of advice ,,this is our first year ,,we dug over and weeded the plot and put in raised beds this is working well but we have so many weeds coming through we are hoeing them as we go put it seems a never ending job,,not sure what to do for next year ,,,we have a endless supply of horse manure so when we have finished with the beds if we covered them in manure would it kill off the weeds or are we better off weed killing the beds saving the manure for spring and killing them that way ,,we haven't mulched the beds this year and we defiantly plan to do that next year to

so i suppose I'm asking the best way to deal with them

[zazen999]

It really depends on what sort of weeds they are.

[Jerryfb]

Manure often contains weeds of it's own so don't expect that to suppress the weeds. If you want to avoid the weed killer but are doing no planting in the beds what you could do is spread a good load of manure down and then cover that with any old carpet. The weeds struggle to get through and die. The tougher perennials will be weakened for weeding next year.

[Hazel at the Hill]

...we have so many weeds coming through we are hoeing them as we go put it seems a never ending job....

Well, yes, it is really - hoeing weed seedling is the best way to keep them down. Weed seeds can lie dormant in the soil for years, and then there's the ones which are blown in by the wind.

Mind you, I think hoeing is a satisfying job - it always looks so good afterwards.

ETA - covering the ground with weed fabric/cardboard/wet newspaper/straw etc will keep weeds down too - although personally I wouldn't use carpet

[yellow strawberry]

the main weeds that are coming through heavily is thistle they seen to be everywhere

[Two_Sheds]

Thistle will grow through most mulches ... so manure alone won't kill it, neither will hoeing.
You need to dig these out. A thick mulch will weaken thistles, making digging out so much easier (I did it with an old fence panel, it worked really well. Carpet is OK if you regularly turn it over, or else weeds will grow up and through it)
Thick layers of wet newspaper work too (top these with your manure)


Or glyphosate them if you don't care about organic methods

[OllieMartin]

I planted all my brassicas through weed suppressant matting this year. It doesn't take a lot of effort to put down, looks very tidy, and has so-far required no weeding what-so-ever.
I mainly put it down to stop the local cats which are a total nuisance, but it has been so successful I think I will do it again in subsequent years.

Doesn't work well for all crop types though.


(near left bed)

[Bren In Pots]

I've been doing a vine search and found this thread I think it solves my problem with cats.

When I only grew in pots/containers the local cats weren't interested but now i've got beds I can't keep them away

So Ollie I'm going to use your idea and plant my courgettes and cucumbers through weed fabric. My carrots and cabbage are under netting so they've been safe (fingers crossed) from cat poo. but with the courgettes/cucs needing room to sprawl theres going to a lot of bare soil.

[Two_Sheds]

problem with cats... a lot of bare soil.

If you can avoid having bare soil, it will really help (although some cats will poo on top of netting/grass etc)

I don't have much bare ground on my plot. I keep it covered with a green manure of some kind (usually limnanthes or nemophila) and just rip it out when I need to plant something else.

A living mulch looks much nicer than plastic (imo) and provides nectar for bees etc as well. After the first year, they seed themselves, so not really any extra work for the gardener

[Flummery]

You will always get weeds. As people have said, what you do about them depends on what they are. Deep rooted stuff like your thistles, dock etc. need digging out. You can pull out or hoe off annual seedlings, preferably on a hot day so they shrivel up. If you do it in the rain they'll still grow! Best of luck.

[Bren In Pots]

If you can avoid having bare soil, it will really help (although some cats will poo on top of netting/grass etc)

I don't have much bare ground on my plot. I keep it covered with a green manure of some kind (usually limnanthes or nemophila) and just rip it out when I need to plant something else.r

TS I only made the bed yesterday and its just bare soil so that's too tempting for the neighbours cat. I covered the bed last night with pots, canes and other junk, then this morning I've bought a roll of weed fabric from Wilko for £2.98 and once it stops raining I'll plant my courgettes and cucs through it.

[geoff]

You will never get rid of weeds, but you can minimise them, supress them and make them easier to remove by improving the soil texture, that is, making it 'softer' and more friable
I did that by spreading newspaper and cardboard, then topping it with vast amounts of manure; doesn't really matter if it's fresh or well rotted, the important thing is to get it in there! When the newspaper and cardboard had rotted I dug in the whole lot. Now my beans, potatoes, onions and beetroot are growing well, though I still have to weed regularly. And the number of worms has increased considerably, always a good sign
Get the soil right and improved as much as possible, and you can sort the weeds as they appear. It will be hard work weeding for a couple of summers, but eventually they will be reduced to more manageable proportions
I wouldn't use carpet; my previous tennant did, and 4 years later I'm still picking bits of it out; in fact it's banned on most allotments. Use a thick layer of (you guessed it) newspaper and cardboard instead; you can just plant through it and dig it in later

[Jeanied]

I think the horses must love to eat thistles. It seems the manure contains lots of seeds. I get loads of thistles on my plot - the only answer is to keep on top of them - I use a hoe as often as I can. They do lose vigour, the more often you decapitate them!

[Flummery]

I think the horses must love to eat thistles. It seems the manure contains lots of seeds. I get loads of thistles on my plot - the only answer is to keep on top of them - I use a hoe as often as I can. They do lose vigour, the more often you decapitate them!

Nettles are the weed of choice here!

[BUFFS]

as horse manure is always full of weed seeds,see if you can get hold of cow manure ,i find it has very few weeds compared to horse,i put 2/3ins of manure on in sept/oct,it may be quite fresh at that stage,completely cover the required beds and let the worms do the rest,all mixed in,ready at springtime(it also keeps down weeds in autumn/winter)..