Another user suggested using boiling water to kill weeds. While it does work, it's also costly in energy use & can take a lot of going back & forth to the stove to do a good job.

Vinegar makes a great weed killer. It has to be used properly to do the job but that's true of almost anything. And it is very safe - endorsed by organic gardeners & used by railway companies to kill vegetation along rail lines that would cover tracks.

Ordinary strength vinegar (5-6% acetic acid) is used. To a gallon of vinegar, one would add a 1/2 tsp of dish detergent to act as a surfactant so the vinegar would penetrate the soil well & move down the root. Put the vinegar into a large squeeze bottle (for a small job). For larger jobs, use a garden sprayer that will deliver a thin stream instead of a wide spray.

You need to trim off leaves of weeds that cover the root (like dandelions, plantain, & other low growing weeds) but if the leaves aren't in the way, don't worry. Just make sure you aim the vinegar stream down to the ground & just around the root. It will penetrate & the weed will die in a day or two. If you spray it around, the grass or other plants will die too. It's best not to use in a mixed bed where you don't want to harm other plants.

The vinegar kills the weeds by disrupting the normal pH around the root but is quickly washed out after a rain or if one waters the lawn well. After a rain or two, one can reseed the bare patches with no harm. Pets & children will not be harmed by using vinegar & likely would stay away from the spots 'cause of the vinegary smell. Railway companies use a MUCH stronger concentration - 20% solution but at that strength, it can be dangerous to handle so don't try looking for a stronger concentration.

One more important thing - do this on a SUNNY HOT day for best effects. If you try it during cool or wet weather, your results will be poor. It needs a few days of hot weather to do the best job.

What do you think of this idea or comment?
(You can change your vote at any time)

I agree

No opinion

I disagree