Nothing will make your garden look unkempt faster than an overgrowth of these three common weeds – fortunately there is one incredibly easy solution if you act before summer
There’s nothing more frustrating than spending your summer battling pesky weeds – especially fast-growing plants like dandelions, daisies and buttercups.
Of course, while these flowers aren’t exactly an eyesore, they can cause problems once they start to spread around your garden. One of the major threats they pose is the fact that they can easily dominate your lawn, leeching nutrients from the soil and leaving your grass looking lacklustre and yellow.
Buttercups in particular are known to grow in tightly-packed strands, which can block out light and moisture from large patches of your garden. This has the potential to completely smother your grass.
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However, it’s usually not the best idea to turn straight to a weed killer. These usually contain harsh chemicals that can harm other plants in your garden, including your grass strands.
Instead, there’s a far more simple solution – it just involves a little bit of physical exertion. Gardening expert Fiona Jenkins from myjobquote.co.uk recommends simply pulling them from the root.
Fiona says: “Weeds such as dandelions, daisies, and buttercups, as well as moss, are commonly found on UK lawns. They can affect your lawn’s greenness because they are often not vibrant shades of green themselves, hindering grass growth and reducing its resources.”
She explains that while it may be time-consuming, pulling out weeds by hand is “usually the safest method” to avoid causing damage to your garden. This is because it doesn’t introduce any strange chemicals to your ecosystem.
Though she warns: “Just make sure that you pull them out from the root to prevent regrowth.” This is important, as otherwise it may render your hard work futile come next summer.
Dandelion, daisy and buttercup roots can grow at least 12 inches deep depending on your soil type. To make the yanking process easier, you can wait until it’s been raining, which will make the soil looser and more malleable.
Of course, if you’re dealing with unwanted growth like moss, this may not work as well. Instead of pulling it away by hand, it’s probably better to reach for a rake instead.
Another tip is that many autumn lawn feeds also contain a built-in moss killer. Fiona advises that moss can then be raked away gently around two weeks after application.
If that doesn’t work, you can also use a solution of water and vinegar to banish moss. Simply mix them together in a spray bottle and spritz on the desired area. The acidity of the vinegar should kill off the moss.