Finally getting rid of the weeds - hopefully!

[MrLeek]

Hi all

Got the gardening bug last year (after almost 20 years of regarding cutting the grass as a chore lol!). I grew a couple of things to try - runner beans, potatoes and onions. Beans in growbags and potatoes in sacks - wife bought a potato growing kit 2 years previously which I totally ignored....but the sacks still worked!

Anyway, decent enough results for my first go so now I'm expanding my efforts to include peas, lettuce and the free seeds on this months mag (peppers look tricky for a newbie). Been working hard getting the garden in better shape - the amount off couch grass I've removed is mental - build a couple of raised beds and a small dry stone wall to form another raised bed. Coming together nicely but still plenty to do.

That said I've noticed that my beds are growing something that looks like 2 leafed clover. There's a few perinnial weeds that are trying to make a comeback...and at the back of the garden behind a 6ft fence are a LOT of brambles which try to get under/ through the fence and i cant get behind the fence to clear them. Therefore:

- is it worth using a weedkiller to finish off the weeds? I can pull those small weeds, but it's easy to miss that I've left the root behind. I can squirt some over the fence to help with those brambles as well....
- got plenty of good compost/manure to make up the bed near that fence. Is it worth using a weed blocker against the bottom of the fence? Will it be worth the time now to save effort later (I'll probably have a few established plants at the back to help break up the fence)?

Jeez talk about War and Peace! But it's nice to introduce oneself before asking questions I think...

Thanks for reading!

[Two_Sheds]

Spraying those brambles won't kill the roots, it won't get rid of them.

Just continue to cut off any that appear on your side of the fence.

[Bren In Pots]

Hello and welome to the vine Mr L

[veggiechicken]

Hello MrLeek and welcome!

[Potstubsdustbins]

Welcome to the mad house MrL.

Colin

[donnakebab]

Spraying those brambles won't kill the roots, it won't get rid of them.

Just continue to cut off any that appear on your side of the fence.

That's what I would do. Just a quick chop with your spade along the edge of the fence should do it.

Before I took on my allotment it had already been sprayed with Roundup. It obviously didn't work because the perennial weeds were still flourishing, especially dock, the roots of which are enormous. I didn't want to use chemicals so the only alternative was to dig up. Two years on Lottie is relatively weed free and you just have to keep on top of any young weeds making a comeback. I'm lucky though because I like weeding. I find it very therapeutic.

[singleseeder]

Hi MrLeek, welcome. Where abouts are you?

[Newton]

Welcome mr leek. I look forward to hearing about your progress.

[Currysniffa]

Hello MrLeek, welcome to the vine

[Two_Sheds]

Before I took on my allotment it had already been sprayed with Roundup. It obviously didn't work because the perennial weeds were still flourishing

Exactly. Every overgrown allotment/garden I've taken on (5) has been sprayed "every year" to keep the weeds down. It kills topgrowth, (which you could just pull out) but not the roots of the tough perennials

[zazen999]

You'll never get rid of weeds. Real gardeners manage them. Other just spray. I know which one I'd rather be.

[MrLeek]

Thanks for the welcome everyone.

Appreciate the advice on those brambles - they're really annoying as I can't get behind the fence to...er "vent my anger" oon them! to be fair though they do make it really difficult for a burgular to hop over that fence so it's not all that bad.

Re that clover stuff. I've weeded a fair bit of it, but I did wonder if a blast of roundup would do the job quicker. Let that stuff do its job whilst I finish painting my fences, then fill up the bed with plenty of free compost that I got hold of. Hand pull the perinnial weeds (has to be one of the most satisfying feelings to pull one of those - "gotcha you little.....") and see if I can grow some lovely grub!

Oh yes, on that fence. Is it worth using a weed blocker fabric on the bottom of that fence to stop the brambles? I get the feeling that they'll get through, but there'll be 2 ft of compost there soon which will cover the bottom of the fence. Will it save me effort in the long run?

Thanks all - and I'll keep updating on my progress. Still can't believe I'm doing gardening!!!

[di]

You saved me from sprinkling a little more doom and gloom

They'll never be totally gone, whether because of a root left behind or the wind blowing a few over. Staying on top of them is the only way. I plan on trying to mulch as much as possible this year.

Good luck and try to get out of your head that you're not there until the weeds are gone...the only weed free plots I know of belong to dedicated lottie holders that are out there at the crack of dawn with a hoe, zapping them as soon as they appear

[Two_Sheds]

those brambles ... they do make it really difficult for a burgular

Yep, the best barbed wire you can't buy
Also very good for wildlife (nesting birds), and if you're lucky, a few blackberries in late summer

Don't waste money on weed fabric for them ~ they'll just laugh at it. If you can totally block the light at the bottom of the fence you'll weaken any that are in the soil. I'd use a goodly layer of cardboard topped with cardboard, soil or something to stop it blowing away.

[taff]

Re that clover stuff. I've weeded a fair bit of it, but I did wonder if a blast of roundup would do the job quicker.
Oh yes, on that fence. Is it worth using a weed blocker fabric on the bottom of that fence to stop the brambles?

First sentence - don't bother, just sharpen your hoe, it's cheaper and quicker.
Second sentence/question - I'd put something a bit sturdier than weed control fabric along the bottom if it's brambles. Got an broken slabs, slate, thick wood or something similar? The first two will keep them out a darn sight longer than the third, and a darn darn sight longer than fabric
hiya by the way