Gardening

Homemade Weed Killer Recipe Using Natural Ingredients

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Commonly available natural ingredients coming straight out of your household can be effectively used to combat the unwanted weeds around your property.

This guide will help you prepare natural weed killers using easily accessible homemade ingredients.

Step 1: Gather Ingredients

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The first step to preparing homemade weed killers is gathering the necessary ingredients that are commonly available in your household.

Make sure to arrange all the below-mentioned essentials by your side:

  • White vinegar (1 gallon)
  • Baking soda (1 cup)
  • Epsom Salt (1 cup)
  • Lemon juice (1/4 cup)
  • Large container or bucket
  • Spray bottle

Further, considering your safety, you need to make arrangements for:

  • Gloves
  • Long pants and sleeves
  • A face shield

Step 2: Combine Vinegar and Salt

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Once you’ve gathered all the necessary elements, you can begin by pouring one gallon of white vinegar into a suitable bucket.

After that, grab a cup of Epsom salt, add it to the vinegar-containing bucket, and stir the solution uniformly. Make sure to continue stirring until the salt completely dissolves into the vinegar.

Step 3: Add Baking Soda

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Having prepared a uniform solution of salt and vinegar, you then need to include baking soda in the bucket.

Grab a cup of baking soda and add it to the solution. As you add soda to the solution, some kind of fizzing phenomenon occurs due to the completely normal reaction.

Stir this mixture until the soda completely dissolves!

Step 4: Mix in Lemon Juice

Finally, add the last but not the least element, lemon juice to the solution. You need to add fresh lemon juice to the solution at the end and stir the mixture evenly.

Step 5: Transfer to a Spray Bottle

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Once the solution is prepared, you need to pick a clean spray bottle and pour the mixture into it.

Step 6: Apply the Solution

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The prepared solution is now ready to take over the weeds. Make sure to spray the solution directly over the weeds after giving the bottle a gentle shake before use.

Remember to take caution while spraying the solution. You wouldn’t want your useful plants and shrubs to get harmed by this homemade solution.

Step 7: Wait and Reapply if Needed

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Now that you have applied the solution to the weeds, it is not guaranteed that you will get over them once and for all. You may have to reapply!

The effectiveness majorly depends upon the environmental conditions. Generally, if everything goes as planned, weeds may start to wilt after a few hours of the application.

Therefore, you need to allow the solution to dry over the weeds after spraying and constantly monitor the progress.

When to Use Homemade Weed Killer?

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1. On Sunny and Dry Days

It has been suggested to apply the freshly prepared weed killer solution on a sunny and dry day. The heat of a sunny and dry day is found to dry out the weeds more quickly.

Remember to look out for the weather forecasts before spraying the solution and avoid a rainy and highly humid day.

2. In the Morning or Early Afternoon

Well, morning or early afternoon is considered an ideal time to apply the weed killer solution over the weeds.

This way, you allow the solution to work throughout the warm and sunny day with high heat and light.

Remember to avoid applying the weed-killer solution in the evening or on a cool day. This can hinder the drying process.

3. During Dry Periods

A dry period with no anticipated rainfall for about 24 hours is recommended for weed-killing tasks using homemade solutions.

This is because you need to allow the solution to remain in the weeds for an extended period, only then you can get the anticipated results.

Further, you need to identify common weeds, if you are to get rid of them.

4. Seasonal Considerations

Early spring or late summer time of the year is considered a perfect time to kill unwanted weeds.

During the early spring, you get to face the young and active weeds while in the late summer, you can prevent the spread of the weeds before they produce seeds.

Natural Weed Removal: Hand-Pulling

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Many gardeners are found to prefer using their hands to manually remove unwanted weeds from their property.

You might have seen full-time gardeners performing their daily ritual of yanking out the weeds from their fields or gardens.

Well, hand pulling as a natural weed removal process is the best approach if you have time. This way, there wouldn’t be any risk of accidental damage or any other unfortunate issues. Learn to pull weeds by hand correctly!

  • Begin by targeting young and active weeds having an immature root system. They shouldn’t take much of your time and are rather easy to pull out.
  • Besides that, you need to choose the post-rain time of the year for hand-pulling the weeds. During this period, the soil is damp and less sturdy.
  • You can use light gardening tools such as shovels to assist you during this task.
  • Once you finish pulling out the weeds, make sure to apply a protective layer of mulch on the soil. This way you can prevent the regrowth of the weeds.
  • Hand-pulling weeds and mulching at the end not only helps to get rid of the unwanted weeds from your property but also promotes the health of the soil.

Long-Term Weed Management

1. Preventive Measures

Prevention is always better than cure if you are to get rid of weeds permanently.

It has been suggested to give proper care to mulching on your field to prevent the growth of the weeds. Mulching of straw or wood chips has been found to block necessary sunlight for the weeds.

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2. Cultural Practices

When you are planting any crop in your garden or field, it would be best if you give proper spacing to each of them.

Further, you need to adopt crop rotation techniques while planting in the gardens if you are looking for long-term weed management.

Proper spacing has been found to help you minimize the weed-growing areas while crop rotation can break the life cycle of weeds, eliminating their life chain.

3. Soil Management

Your soil needs to be managed and maintained properly. You can adopt the practice of adding organic matter, compost, or manure to the soil.

This way, you improve the soil structure, fertility, and retention ability, ensuring a robust soil environment. Improved and well-managed soil helps to eliminate favorable weed-growing conditions.

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4. Herbicide Use

You can choose to use herbicide if you are to control the weeds effectively around your property.

Remember to pick the right herbicide from the store that is intended to be used only against the weeds, or else you might end up harming other useful flowers and plants.

The environmental impact should always be sought for when using herbicide!

5. Regular Monitoring

Well, early detection of new weed growth allows you to address problems promptly before they escalate. Therefore, regular monitoring is crucial for maintaining effective weed management.

Make sure to exercise routine inspections of garden areas to identify weed types and growth patterns.