April Showers Bring May Flowers…And Weeds!

Remember that old saying “April showers bring May Flowers”?  This gives us hope that after the rains, spring will burst with Tulips, Azaleas, Cherry Blossoms, Dogwood Trees, Flowering Crabapple Trees and the like. But there is something else that catches our attention during spring. Along with that new life filled with color and aroma comes the “other” perennials, the dreaded and sometimes belligerent weeds!

Weeds are often a misunderstood plant. The purpose of weeds are so diverse and their varieties are seemingly pretty…and endless, but one thing is for sure– weeds are plants growing where we don’t want them to grow.  They can remain dormant for months, and even years, until the moisture of the rain and the warm weather create the ideal condition them (dandelions, chickweed and a whole host of other undesirable weeds).

Unfortunately, if we do find ourselves knee deep in these undesirable vegetation, the best method to extract them is by mechanical means. This means we must physically pull or dig out the deeply rooted weed by hand.  An assortment of hand tools are available, such as slicing hoes, winged weeders, hand cultivators and hand rakes that can help this task to be a little less back-breaking.

A better plan is to try and prevent as many of those weeds popping up all over in the first place. In our war against weeds, we have two defensive treatments: pre-emergent herbicide and mulch. Pre-emergent herbicides inhibits or halts the growth of the weeds.  Mulch not only makes our beds look uniform and attractive, but it benefits plants by keeping the soil cool and moist and depriving weeds of light. Organic mulches, in particular, can actually host crickets and carabid beetles, which seek out and devour thousands of weed seeds.

Weed management can be a pretty daunting and tedious task if you’re not careful. But in the end, it is definitely worth it– resulting in healthy and nutrient-fed flowers and produce. If you need help, give DK Landscaping a call to assist you with either one-time maintenance or to set-up a maintenance schedule to give you extra reinforcement (707) 280-2632(707) 280-2632.