Health and safety have always been a big part of Mathiou Services DNA, and gardening has its own hazards when warding off the weeds. The potential harmful side effects of chemical herbicide used in the wrong way are many and the number of studies to support such claims is too numerous to list. As one example, the number one ingredient in many commercial weed killers, glyphosate, is known to persist in the environment much longer than it is claimed, even with the prescribed ‘safe‘ amount used.
The practice of organic weed control for your crops and gardens is not only good for the environment but good for the health.
There are various ways to kill weeds:
Thermal Weed Controls – burning the weeds either using the sun or a flame
Mechanical Weed Controls – Manually removing them using tools such as picks, cultivator, broad forks, rakes, and numerous other garden implements can be used effectively for organic weed control (and offer great exercise as well).
Mulches – Typically you would think this is wood chips but it’s actually any ground covering, living or otherwise, and is a great organic weed control. Living mulch are plants that are intentionally planted to cover the ground i.e. ivy, ajuga, or vinca, vines some even opt for dandelions or polsane. Or cover crops like manure, oats, vetch, or clover. Even some modern bio-based plastics are options such as fresh wood chips or unaged hardwood mulch, and hay.
Organic Herbicides- Most of these are organic herbicides that control weeds and grasses after they have germinated (post-emergence) and are generally some combination of horticultural grade vinegar, acetic acid or citric acid, and other plant oils such as clove, garlic, or mint. Mixed properly and used regularly this is extremely effective and safe for all types of gardens, namely around children.
The Old-Fashioned Method- “pulling them out” sadly this is the most effective and even with organic herbicides which is the most kid-friendly products you are limited with where and when you can use it.
Mathiou Services are committed to using the most effective organic and kid-friendly approach and found a blend of organic herbicides on a regular schedule is effective in the long run. But while Organic Herbicides effectively coats and slowly kills the roots, manual labour is sometimes needed as well.
How often should you have this done?
We recommend doing garden maintenance every 2 weeks for regular maintenance, but if you have left it to grow then the initial period would be weekly.
Our team of gardeners usually can see how aggressive the weeds are and can gage when to come back and how often but if you locked in for regular maintenance then the cost is spread evenly regardless of the state of your gardens at present.
If you would like to know more about our Organic approach or would like to book in one of gardeners to assess your maintenance needs then feel free to email connect@mathiouservices.com.au or phone us on 1300 363 423.
Sources:
https://www.maximumyield.com/advantages-of-organic-weed-control/2/2985
