Baymule's 2019 Garden

[Britesea]

Well, the soil certainly looks fertile- to give you that much produce PLUS all those weeds

 

[frustratedearthmother]

 

[baymule]

When I ran the tractor in there this spring and disced it up, I quite effectively planted every weed seed dropped there for the last 100 years. The weeds really appreciate all my hard work to improve the soil.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

I quite effectively planted every weed seed dropped there for the last 100 years. T

I hate it when that happens!

 

[wyoDreamer]

that is why i roto-tilled the garden 2 weeks ago. Now that I am getting a nice green tinge to the area, I will roto-till again to kill off all the new weed seedlings that have sprouted.
I know that I am never going to be able to eradicate all the weed seeds form the soil, but I can keep trying!
Besides, the new tractor makes it really easy to roto-till the entire garden. Once I have stuff planted, it will be harder because I will need to use the walk behind tiller.

 

[Lazy Gardener]

Consider all those weed seedlings to be a green manure crop. However, every time you do a deep tilling, you will be bringing a new crop to the surface from what is an inexhaustible supply.

An other option for weed management, in a weedy garden would be to flame the seedlings every 2 - 3 weeks without disturbing the soil. (I do not yet have a flame weeder, but consider that it would be a very worth while investment.) In the absence of a flame weeder, simply lightly hoe the garden bed every few weeks. The goal would be to do so before those seedlings develop true leaves, while they are still at the "thread" root stage.

Or go the Ruth Stout or BTE method and cover the soil with permanent mulch so the weeds can't get established in the first place.

 

[CrealCritter]

Weeds are just part of gardening. Everywhere the sun hits the ground a weed will sprout. I till them under in between rows, hoe and pull by hand around the plants. If it will ever dry out enough I have to get my summer garden going.

 

[Lazy Gardener]

You can also put those weeds in a bucket of water, and make weed-post tea. Smells really, super, stinky, but plants love it.

 

[baymule]

I have major truck loads of mulch, several years old and well rotted. Black, crumbly, good stuff! We also collect cardboard to smother out the weeds and I use paper feed sacks. In the fall, I let the sheep in to clean up. With all the rain we have had, the weeds are having a great time. With all the soil amendments we have nurtured the soil with, the weeds LOVE it. Oh well, I will call victory for any edible anything I pull out of the garden.

 

[baymule]

You can also put those weeds in a bucket of water, and make weed-post tea. Smells really, super, stinky, but plants love it.

How long to soak the weeds?