Wilt Weeds, Wilt!!

I love gardening. I mean I genuinely love designing our landscape, learning about new plants, putting them in, and than watching them add a new dimension to our home. I think this is one reason I was not really content with gardening when we lived in Florida. Although many plants grew exceptionally well there, the seasons don't change, and that really takes away from my delight in watching leaves change, bulbs sprout new flowers, and the burst of color that comes with the Spring. I suppose I appreciate the emergence of a hundred different hues when even the grass is brown all winter.

I draw the line at weeding, however. I hate weeds. But more distasteful than the weeds, are the toxic chemicals most folks use the get rid of them.

Nobody likes to pull weeds, only to have the root stubbornly remain in place as the top of the weed abruptly snaps of and sends her body flying in the other direction. Or in the case of our briars, the thorns bully their way through the toughest glove, leaving a puncture wound that reminds the human who's boss.

The result is the booming chemical weed-killer industry. One of the nastiest of these is Round-Up; Monsanto's creation. If you've never heard of Monsanto, the company is worth looking into. They are behind NutraSweet, Bovine Growth Hormone, and Genetically Modified Seeds which produce the only plants that are impervious to Round-Up's deadly mist. Monsanto is worth it's own post, so I will get to that another day.

Back to my weed pulling dilemma: how to get the weed and its root without bruising my derriere and spraying down my legs (and lungs) with poison.

I rejoice that I have found a solution! It's literally a solution; a large container of high-potency vinegar mixed with yucca extract (a surfactant).

I spent $20-something on it, and poured some into a sprayer bottle. Then I headed out to spray our weeds, hoping that I wasn't wasting my money, time, and trigger-finger muscles.

The directions recommended that I mist each weed, and aim for a day when the weeds hadn't recently enjoyed rain water, and wouldn't for a few days to come....

I'm not the most patient lady on the planet, so it had rained within the last day or two, and the forecast predicted possible showers later that day. I crossed my fingers, and hoped for the best.

Aside from getting a wiff or two of very strong vinegar up my nose, and having a drop of the stuff find its way over to a paper cut on my thumb (which stung like crazy) it was one of my better weed-spraying experiences. I didn't obsess over how much toxic spray I was breathing in, if my clothes would expose my kids to harmful chemicals, or if over-spray would reach my organic potted veggies and fruits.

And the best part? The next day, all the weeds I sprayed were either brown, or were badly damaged and one their way out of my garden!! You can see in my photo that most of the little devils are brown and crispy, and only one survived. This is not unusual for any weed killer...so I'm very satisfied. On top of that, I didn't follow the directions to the letter, and it did drizzle a few hours after I sprayed.

If you want to give this stuff a try in your own garden, you can find it here. Keep in mind, it's not selective, so it'll kill everything (just like Round Up). Only spray it on the stuff you want gone!

For fellow gardeners: The top photo is of our creeping phlox, the middle one is dianthus which smells incredible (much like a carnation). Both are perennials!