Gardening tips: Four homemade hacks to kill garden weeds
Weeds can grow in even the smallest of cracks in a patio if households don’t take precautions to prevent them.
If pavers are installed properly, weeds will have a hard time growing up through the spaces between them.
However, over time, the space between the joints may come loose, letting weeds take hold.
Regularly sweeping and maintaining a patio will prevent seeds from settling between the pavers or into cracks, but to get rid of them, gardeners have suggested using a “cheap” household item – washing powder.
Taking to the Gardening UK Facebook page, Maria Lopez posted a picture of her patio covered in weeds and asked: “What could I do to remove those weeds from my patio?
READ MORE: 7 ‘drought-tolerant’ plants to keep gardens looking ‘vibrant’ during hot weather
“I have used several products but none can clear it completely and they grow more every time. Thank you so much.”
Rather than spending several pounds on chemical weed killers, group members suggested using washing powder as it’s cheaper and households are likely to already own some.
Mary Cole said: “Once a year I cover my patio with washing powder, pour boiling water over it and leave it. They disintegrate and I just sweep them away after two to three weeks.
“It soaks through the green right down to the roots. If the roots aren’t killed you’ll get them coming straight back. The washing powder also helps to clean the patio as well.”
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Stuart Williams commented: “I literally pour boiling water and washing powder on them. Wait for them to start dying and brown off, then use a brush and turn them to dust.”
Nicky Jordan said: “I read a couple of years ago to use cheap washing powder from Aldi/Lidl, so I tried that and they don’t come back.
“So, get rid of what is there, then sprinkle the washing powder into the gaps of the paving and put water on it and just leave it, worked for us.”
Natasha Davies wrote: “Boiling water and washing powder. The leaves wilt instantly and turn brown within hours. It definitely gets rid of the leaves.”
Sarah Jackson said: “Someone asked about this last week. They said to sprinkle washing powder over the weeds and pour boiling water on them. I did it and it actually has worked for me. You could give that a try.”
According to the paving experts at Harpenden Block Paving, even just pouring boiling water over the weeds will remove them and prevent them from spreading.
They claimed: “A good way to kill weeds and prevent germination is to boil your kettle and pour the water between your patio slabs. Repeat until you have doused all pesky weeds.”
Once the weeds have been removed, polymeric jointing sand is worth sealing the gaps in patio slabs. The experts instructed: “All you need to do is sweep the powdered sealant between the gaps in your patio and lightly spray with water to let the sealant bond.”
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