Weeds are simply plants growing in places you don't want them to -- plants that you consider undesirable, but insist on growing in your garden anyway.

Weed seeds exist in the soil of all gardens and can be spread by wind, water, animals and even by the soil amendments we use to help our gardens grow. Here are some ideas to consider for organic weed control:

Prevention is the best medicine. In the fight against weeds, the most important element is to provide the best conditions possible for the growth of desirable plants. Improper watering, soil compaction, insect damage and disease all contribute to weed development. All of these conditions can be easily avoided by proper mulching.

After fostering a nurturing environment, the second step is to remove any existing offenders by hand weeding.

Without harming your crops, you can turn the weeds into the soil with a weeding hoe or any version of this time-tested tool.

Use barriers. Lay plastic down around plants to block weeds. It works well with warm weather-loving crops such as melons, pumpkins, eggplants and tomatoes.

An excellent alternative to plastic is ordinary newspaper. It is organic, it can be turned into the soil the following Spring and is a lot cheaper than rolls of black plastic. Use a layer about ¼- inch thick and wet it down as soon as you lay it to stop it from blowing away. Then cover the newspaper with a layer of straw.

Live mulches are gaining a lot of respect in the garden. The idea is simple; using a fast growing and short plant to cover the surface of the soil around the garden plants. Thyme is a perfect choice for this method.

Another use of living mulch is the cover crop. If you plant rye in the fall, it will protect the soil from erosion all winter, add lots of good organic material to your soil when turned over in the spring, and won't allow weeds a chance to get established in your plot.

Corn gluten meal can be applied as a pre-emergent weed killer. It has been shown to inhibit the growth of dandelions, crabgrass and many other annual weeds.

How to Control Weeds

Prevention is the best medicine. In the fight against weeds, the most important element is to provide the best conditions possible for the growth of desirable plants. Improper watering, soil compaction, insect damage and disease all contribute to weed development. All of these conditions can be easily avoided by proper mulching.

The importance of mulch cannot be stressed enough. Mulch protects your soil from compaction from raindrops and even walking in the garden. It retains water long after a rain and slows evaporation too. All of this leads to healthy plants that resist disease and insect damage.

Healthy garden plants will crowd out some of the weed invaders, but there is more to it than that!

After fostering a nurturing environment, the second step is to remove any existing offenders by hand. The best time to attack weeds is while they are young, tender and actively growing. Hand weeding is the oldest method around. It works well on small areas, but isn.t really appropriate for your entire garden. Without harming your crops, you can till the weeds and turn them into the soil with a weeding hoe or any version of this time-tested tool.

In the Spring it is a great idea to till the garden a few weeks before planting, this will give the soil a head-start in warming up and also allow a great number of the weed seeds to germinate, exposing the tender sprouts to a violent death by hoe or shovel!

Now that we have gotten down and dirty in our fight, we can reduce further confrontation by using barriers. Plastic is laid down between plants to block weeds.

It works well with crops such as melons, pumpkins, eggplants and tomatoes. You can leave the plastic exposed in the spring to help warm up the soil, but as the sun heats up in July, it is a good idea to cover the plastic with straw or any other light colored mulch to protect the plants from overheating. Many gardeners have found that covering the plastic proves to be inconvenient when trying to clean up the garden for the winter, it also gets caught up in the tines of our tillers. An excellent alternative is ordinary newspaper. It is organic, it can be tilled into the soil the following Spring and is a lot cheaper than rolls of black plastic. Use a layer about ¼- inch thick and wet it down as soon as you lay it to stop it from blowing away.

Leaves, grass clippings, straw, sawdust and wood mulch are all great choices for blocking weeds, conserving moisture and adding organic material to the soil and are perfect for covering the newspaper or plastic.

Live mulches are gaining a lot of respect in the garden. This idea is simple, using a fast growing and short plant to cover the surface of the soil around the garden plants. Thyme is a perfect choice for this method, it can be established quickly from seed, enhances the flavor of many other plants, helps keep insects at bay, and smells so good when you step on it! Another use of living mulch is the cover crop. If you plant rye in the fall, it will protect the soil from erosion all Winter, add lots of good organic material to your soil when turned over in the Spring, and won.t allow weeds a chance to get established in your plot.

Finally, there is now a product that you can apply to stop weeds from germinating in your organic garden! Corn Gluten meal is a by product of corn syrup and cornstarch production. It contains nitrogen and protein and is sold as animal feed for cows, chickens, and is used as filler in pet foods. Corn Gluten meal can be applied as fertilizer and as a pre-emergent weed killer. It has been shown to inhibit the growth of dandelions, crabgrass and many other annual weeds. It needs to be supplemented with phosphorus and potassium if you plant to use it for fertilizer though. If you purchase chicken feed, be sure to check the label to ensure at least 60% corn gluten meal, it should say so near the protein content portion of the label. The best thing about this method is that it is almost completely safe. Kids and pets can walk on it barefooted without worry. The only concern is application rate, ten pounds is perfect for a 500 square foot plot, if you go heavier than that, you may not get the seedlings you want to emerge!

Some gardeners purposefully apply heavily in paths, it works well and nothing grows there for the entire season!

Well, that is the low-down on weeds. They are a pain in the grass, or the garden. Good luck in your own personal battle, and if you have any tips, send them to us!

http://www.cdcg.org/weeds.html

For long-term, organic weed control we recommend using strategies that not only attack or eliminate the weed (hand pulling, natural herbicides), but also techniques that reduce or eliminate the habitat supporting the weed. Methods of habitat modification include: planting competing plants, using barriers and limiting water and/or light. Natural herbicides are effective and earth-friendly, breaking down rapidly in the environment. At Planet Natural we offer a variety of quality organic weed control products.

�?Corn gluten meal can be applied as a pre-emergent weed killer. It has been shown to inhibit the growth of dandelions, crabgrass and many other annual weeds.

http://www.planetnatural.com/site/xdpy/sgc/Organic%20Lawn%20Care/Weed%20Control

Boiling water will kill any plant growth it touches. It is very inexpensive and simple to use. It is superb for killing annual weeds and can control and/or kill perennial weeds. It is a popular non-toxic means for killing weeds growing in cracks and driveways.

"How do I use boiling water to kill weeds?"

Simply boil up your kettle, grab the handle using a pot holder and bring it out to your garden. Once you take the kettle off the fire it's water temperature will drop a few degrees and cease to boil in the time it takes you to get out to the garden, but the water will still be extremely hot and will kill the weed growth by scalding it.

Slowly and carefully pour the stream of water onto the crown of the weed plant. You can make this easier and more effective by cutting off the top growth of the plant before you dowse it with the kettle water. Pour the water from a low height of just a few inches above the plant crown to avoid any splashing.

"Will some plants still resprout?"

Some perennial plants with long taproots (such as dandelion) may resprout from the lower root area if it has not been scalded. In a lawn you can remove the top growth and dig a hole above the root....manually remove some of the root if possible. Pour the kettle water into the hole and it will seep down and kill whatever sections of the weed root it can reach. Refill the hole with soil and sow some grass seed right away so there is no bare spot where airborne weed seeds can take hold.

If a weed resprouts in a sidewalk crack or driveway repeat the boiling water treatment. Each time the weed resprouts the growth will be smaller and weaker and the most stubborn perennial weeds will eventually die, usually after two or three treatments.

"Does the boiling water also kill the biota in the soil?"

Boiling water will kill whatever biota it touches, however, because the stream of kettle water is carefully and slowly poured onto a small area this effect is reduced. New biota will quickly return to the area within a few days.

"What precautions should I take when using boiling water to kill weeds?"

*Use a pot holder or hotmitt to hold the kettle handle to prevent burning your hand from the kettle's heat.

*Pour the kettle water slowly and from a close height of a few inches above the plant crown to avoid splashing.

*Wear long pants and closed-toe shoes. Shorts and sandals can't protect your skin if you accidentally splash the kettle water.

Trudi

http://faq.gardenweb.com/faq/lists/weeds/2002105058024260.html