A stupid question about weeding

[Janna]

Hi all gardening gurus, this is going to sound a bit silly but I'm a bit confused. In the past everything I've grown has come from seedtrays, plugs and pots, but having finally got my lumpy clay soil into something usable I've direct sown lots of things, spinach, carots etc. MY problem is how do I know what to allow to grow? In a seed tray it's easy to thin out as you know which are the right plants, but the row is just a mass of various tiny leaves now! Do I just let it all get established and then weed around things when they look the part or am I missing a trick here?

[Mikey]

You got it, I let things get about an 1", to 1 1/2" then thin out, its fairly obvious what should stay by that point (though I did weed out all my sweetcorn the first year I planted them!), and you can fill in the patches that didn't germinate with the pricked out seedlings.

[Two_Sheds]

If you leave your weeding too long, your plants will be swamped and out-competed for food, light and water. Weeds grow quicker (than your plants) because they have adapted perfectly to the conditions.

What I do is micro-weed just around the plants when the weeds are tiny...about 2 inches all the way round the plant so it can 'breathe' and you can see it clearly. It would take you days to pick out all the tiny tiny weeds, so just do the ones immediately surrounding your plants, to start with.

Then I let the remaining weeds between the rows get a bit bigger, so i can pull them out or hoe them off. I got 2 bucketfuls today, straight on the compost heap.

[Claire72]

Glad someone else asked that question, been wondering myself!

[bazzaboy]

hi Janna, Good that you've prioritised getting the soil workable, it makes such a huge difference not only to growth rates but extracting weeds without too much disturbance. I'm slightly confused about whether you're talking about weeding (i.e removing aliens ) or thinning out (i.e. culling to allow maximum conditions for the chosen few). If you've previously grown from stuff in seedtrays, plugs etc I assume you can recognise the leaves of the chosen crop - if not you'll quickly learn to recognise them (carrots quite frilly, beetroot usually red-veined etc) and of course the fact that they will predominate in the row is the best giveaway of all. I've learned (the hard way) to remove the aliens (weeds) as soon as I can spot them because they will still be shallow rooted. As2Sheds says, they're likely to outpace the chosen crops and some - particularly onion family - are so hopeless at protecting themselves they need a permanent nursemaid... Others, like courgettes, mark out their territory with giant leaves and even weeds don't dare to grow (i.e. can't through lack of light!).

If thinning is the problem that's really a different technique (and one I go to great lengths to avoid by sowing thinly, sowing from modules, letting them push one another apart etc). If you absolutely have to "thin" I would suggest the sooner the better - largely because of root disturbance if you leave it too long and in the case of carrots in particular the risk of attracting carrot fly. There seems to be a growing fashion for not sowing in drills but across a wider spread - less thinning required - but you do need to be able to recognise the first leaves to successfully use that technique (and "mixed salad bowl" sown that way become a real tease... is that a lettuce or a thistle? )

If you think weeds have grown too much to yank out - easier when soil damper rather than drier -you can always use the hoe principal - ie cut them off at soil level... In most cases they'll regrow and try to seed again with alarming speed so it becomes a struggle of wills, yours vs Ma Nature! Completely remove weeds to wherever (bin, compost etc) - pulled weeds even left on a concrete path in full sun will STILL seed with their dying gasp, admirable really though you might not think so when it happens!

Have fun.... bb.

=

[rustylady]

Even though my lottie's workable I still tend to sow as much as I can in celltrays and transplant. At least that way I've got them through the really vulnerable stage.

[valmarg]

I'm with you rustylady. We've lost more runner/broad bean and pea seeds by direct sowing (rotted).

valmarg

[Farmer_Gyles]

i do the seed trays / cells and pot on then plant out - this helps the plants avoid slug attack - and also avoids the problems with weeds and tiny seedlings
almost all of my veggie patch is covered in weed sheeting so weeds are not a problem any more

[Paulottie]

I'm with Rustylady too. I do most things in modules or pots as it is a lot more pleasant sitting in my propagation house at home than on my hands and knees at the lottie searching through weed seedlings and thinning out- plus wasted seed is expensive seed.

For those crops I do sow direct (carrots, Parsnips, beetroot, spinach, broad beans etc.) my tips are:

1. Be organised and prepare your seedbed three weeks or so in advance then water if dry to encourage the first flush of weeds, hoe these off, rake and then sow your crop.
2. With the smaller seeds make your drill, sow and then use old potting compost or multipurpose to cover. This stops capping, marks your row ( so you can see where to hoe) and gives you a small head start on the weeds.

[Two_Sheds]

I have terrible weeds on my new allotment. The nettles kept everything down, but now they're gone, the bindweed is coming through, and millions of annual weeds. This year is going to be one of constant hand-weeding.

I will avoid digging or disturbing the soil as much as poss, as this will bring thousands of new weed seeds into the light and allow them to germinate.

[bazzaboy]

I wish I could name weeds more extensively than I can.... then I might name and shame! Does anyone know a good ILLUSTRATED website of common UK weeds? Pictures of Common Weed Leaves is quite good but illustrates individual leaves rather than the whole plant so gets a mite confusing - and there's so many of 'em! bb.

[bazzaboy]

To half answer my own question (been Googling)
Weeds - Yellow
has a more limited range of common weed flowers (arranged by colour) - if you've let them get that far.
Anyone know a way of eradicating goose grass which seems to be one of my most successful crops in semi-neglected areas - does that suggest the ph is awry? bb.

[Janna]

Wow, thanks everyone! I've been away for a while and having returned the rains have given full steam ahead on the rapidly becomming weedbed! Think I'll go back to the growing eveything in the poly to start with method. And get attacking the bed if it ever stops raining!

[Demeter]

Anyone know a way of eradicating goose grass which seems to be one of my most successful crops in semi-neglected areas - does that suggest the ph is awry? bb.

There is a ton of that at our site, although around here we call it sticky willy, sticky-wicky or sweetheart... Mostly it grows on our neighbours' compost heap! I think it likes rich soil so the fact you have loads is good news... in a way It's an annual, so you can just pull it up (which is easy), obviously best to do this before it produces seeds.

Annual Weeds & Organic Weed Control
Cleavers - Weed information - Organic Weed Management