Have you walked through your yard and, instead of feeling peace and enjoyment, felt dread and overwhelm?
Recently, I walked through the far back portion of my yard and was stopped dead in my tracks. All I could mutter was “Oh sh.t!
There, in the back portion of my yard, behind the most beautiful flowers, shrubs, fence, and gate, were the tallest weeds known to man: giant ragweed… ugh.
I am SERIOUS… they were over 10 feet tall !!!
Did I mention that I am super allergic to ragweed of all types?? I get big red welts and hives on any exposed skin, plus watery eyes and rounds of sneezing.
After I stood there staring at the mess ahead of me for a bit, I turned right around and almost ran back to the garage.
I hastily grabbed a pruner, gloves, and a bucket.
I didn’t have time for yard work, but I knew there was one thing that couldn’t wait!
Even though the weeds were over my head, I reached up, bent the monstrous weed stalks down, and clipped the flowering tips into a bucket.
Why, you ask?
All I saw in the tall weeds were tiny, faded flowers turning into thousands of weed seeds and taking over the whole area I’d worked hard to keep clear for the past few years.
I knew the best way to control future weeds is to prevent current weeds from producing and spreading seed.
Cutting the tips of the giant ragweed took me about 15 minutes. I knew this one step would save dozens, if not hundreds, of hours of weeding not just this year, but over multiple years.
Did you know some weed seeds can live in the soil for 50 years or more, just waiting for the right conditions?
So next time you’re overwhelmed by maintenance but have limited time to devote to weeding, grab a pruner and bucket and tackle those weed seeds.
Dispose of those seeds in the garbage. Keep them out of the compost pile.
Many compost piles do not reach a high enough temperature to kill many weed seeds. That often needs to be 130 degrees Fahrenheit or higher.
Also, if you are allergic like me, make sure to cover all exposed skin, wear gloves, and shower and launder cloths when working with the plants.