Homemade herbicide with vinegar: effective and easy to make
When it comes to caring for your garden, it is important to get rid of problematic weeds. With the right solutions, it is not difficult to get rid of them. These are natural alternatives to the chemicals whose ingredients you probably have in your possession, including white vinegar.
Chemical herbicides are abundant in the garden departments of supermarkets or specialized stores. However, there is nothing better than using natural ingredients that are not toxic to health and the environment. That is why we offer you this trick based on white vinegar whose properties are excellent for weeding out unwanted sprouts.
Weed removal – Source: spm
Vinegar, an excellent product against unwanted weeds
Vinegar is so effective at getting rid of unwanted growth in the garden because of the acid it contains. This breaks down the walls surrounding the plant cells of the weeds while removing their moisture. If you have vinegar of any kind, don’t hesitate to appropriate it for this type of task because it also has the advantage of not affecting neighboring plants if of course you are targeting the weed in question. Be careful though because although it doesn’t affect other plants, these should not be touched when applying the product because after all it is not a selective herbicide. You risk killing them in turn.
In addition to these details, it is also recommended to favor the application of the vinegar solution in sunny weather rather than cloudy weather. The vinegar and UV rays work together to eradicate unwanted leaves.
How to prepare vinegar-based weed solution?
It is not a question of using vinegar alone here because if we want it to work as well as possible, it must be associated with coarse salt and dishwashing liquid or black soap. Pour a glass of salt and a tablespoon of dishwashing liquid or black soap into 3 to 4 liters of white vinegar and then stir everything well to homogenize the solution. You get one of the best ecological solutions against weeds or, in other words, weeds. Pour the solution into a spray bottle before spraying it on the weeds.
Herbicide spray – Source: spm
On the one hand we have the salt which, together with the vinegar, contributes more to dissolving the herb while the dish soap will help to cover the leaves better. Of course, you can opt for a vinegar with a higher degree of acidity. In this case, it may be best to equip yourself with a glove and protective glasses before spraying your natural weed control product.
There are other tricks that you can also use such as: boiling water, cooking water, 80% alcohol, the thermal weeding technique or baking soda.
Another interesting technique is to cover the soil with a thick layer of newspaper to smother unwanted plants. This way, you prevent sunlight from reaching harmful weeds so they cannot germinate.
How to manage weeds?
However, the vinegar herbicide solution should not be considered the absolute remedy for weed control because it must also be combined with other actions. Therefore, it is advisable to combine manual weed removal and the application of organic herbicides to have better quality plantations.
Weed removal – Source: spm
To keep plants healthy, it is also recommended to lay down a ground cover and add mulch. This way, you will not only have significantly fewer weeds, but you will also enjoy a well-kept garden without having to resort to chemical weeding.
Furthermore, despite the effectiveness of the vinegar-based solution, it should not be used because, for the same reason that makes it a very effective herbicide, it can be harmful to good microbes. Hence the interest in resorting to mulching with pine needles or cutting the grass to prevent the development of weeds.
Keep in mind, however, that vinegar will work best on small weeds and shallow roots. On stubborn weeds with deep root systems, it is less effective . In this case, manual weeding is appropriate and sometimes the best way to fight weeds. Don’t hesitate to pull them out by hand if you find it necessary.
So alternate between natural herbicide and manual weed removal and you should be good to greatly reduce their appearance.