Fighting weeds? You could set up a chair in your yard to keep constant surveillance, yanking out each and every weed by its roots as soon as it sprouts.
That’s one method of natural weed control.
You don’t need to go to work or cook or do laundry or take a shower, right?
Everybody loves the idea of natural weed control. We all want to be gentle to the earth and allow fewer chemicals to enter our groundwater.
But you also want green, healthy grass, hardly any weeds, and fast results.
Hmmmm. How to get rid of weeds naturally? Does homemade weed killer work? If you did set up a chair for 24-hour weed patrol, would somebody at least bring you a sandwich?
Let’s explore the options.
Does Homemade Weed Killer Work?
Boiling water. Vinegar. Baking soda. Salt.
Anybody else getting hungry? Toss in some baking chocolate and flour and we can have some brownies in 45 minutes. Yum.
Kitchen cupboard weed control just doesn’t work.
These ingredients might make the top part of the weed shrivel up and die, but they won’t affect the root, so the pesky weeds will just pop up again.
In fact, while vinegar might kill your weeds, it can kill surrounding good plants, too.
Save it for your salad dressing.
Natural Weed Control: What About Corn Gluten?
Corn gluten meal is a powdery byproduct of the corn milling process. Originally used as a supplement in hog feed, it’s also used as an organic weed killer.
But it isn’t easy.
Instead of preventing weed seeds from germinating, like pre-emergent weed killer, it keeps weeds from forming roots after they germinate. That’s all it does. It doesn’t kill weeds after they’ve sprouted.
And the timing is super tricky.
After application, corn gluten needs to be watered with a quarter-inch of water, either by rainfall or by watering, within five days. After this, it needs a dry period of one or two days.
It costs more than traditional pre-emergent weed control, too.
You need to put down several applications, which means hundreds or thousands of pounds of the stuff.
It’s not a great solution.
How Patient Are You? Natural Weed Control Takes Years
Unlike more traditional lawn care, truly organic weed killer for lawns doesn’t contain any added synthetic weed control.
It can take as long as three to five years to see results with natural weed control products. Waiting that long is almost as boring as sitting in a chair watching for weeds to pull.
Natural Weed Control: What Are You Actually Getting?
Some lawn care companies advertise natural weed killer for lawns. But is it really natural?
Here’s a clue: Do they spray for weeds? Then you’re likely not getting natural weed control.
There’s no real organic weed killer for lawns that actually works.
How to Get Rid of Weeds Naturally? A Thick, Healthy Lawn
Weeds hate healthy lawns. Thick, thriving grass makes it tougher for weeds to weasel their way into your Wisconsin or Minnesota lawn.
Want to prevent weeds with a thick, healthy lawn? Follow these tips:
Mow tall.
Taller grass helps a lawn grow thicker. Mow too short, and the soil heats up, helping those pesky weed seeds to germinate.
Water wisely.
A lawn that’s too wet or too dry encourages weeds.
Aerate and overseed once or twice a year.
When your soil becomes compacted, your lawn can't breathe. Its roots can't take in water or nutrients, which weakens your turf and opens the door for weeds.
Aeration uses a machine to pull out tiny cores of soil from your lawn, allowing water and oxygen to get to the roots.
Aeration is usually followed by overseeding, as the holes created by aeration are perfect new homes for grass seed. It all means thicker grass, which is better at resisting weeds.
Have a proactive lawn care plan.
Choose a complete, proactive lawn care program that includes both preventative and curative treatments to kill lawn weeds. The best lawn care companies have a detailed plan in place to kill lawn weeds.
Natural Weed Control vs. What Actually Works
Natural weed control sounds great on paper. But to get real results, you need professional-grade weed killer targeted to the specific weeds invading your yard — without killing your lawn.
Some weeds are especially stubborn, and need a specialty weed killer multiple times throughout the year to combat them.
Weeds are super tough. They need serious treatment.
Caring About the Environment, Together
You want a healthy green lawn, but you care about the rest of the environment, too.
We’re in this together.
You don’t want us to just blanket your lawn with weed control materials if it doesn’t really need it. So we don’t.
Maybe all you need is a targeted spot treatment that will take care of that pesky problem area that drives you crazy.
No overkill.
Trust Your Lawn Care to RainMaster
Like most people, we love the idea of natural weed control for lawns.
But we don’t offer it.
It just doesn’t provide the results that our customers expect and that we want to deliver as part of our lawn care services in Eau Claire, WI and Minneapolis.
Lets create a custom nutrition plan for your lawn, so the roots will be nourished, the soil packed with nutrients, and your grass so thick and healthy, lawn weeds will have a tough fight ahead.
But when they do show up, let's be ready for them.
Are you ready to stop battling weeds on your lawn in Eau Claire, WI or the Minneapolis area? Request a quote today! We’ll review your options together so you can make a great choice. Then, you can finally enjoy your lawn and stop worrying about it.
