How to Stop Grass and Weeds from Growing in 7 Practical Ways

Did you know that purslane (persistent garden weed) can produce up to 52000 seeds, and the stems can develop roots and grow at a rate of 1.5 cm a day? As a result, one plant can produce over 1 million seeds per year and spread up to 30 feet from the parent plant? This is why you must launch a war against weeds.

Stopping weeds from growing completely requires consistency. You must do this year-round. Otherwise, they’ll keep growing back. It’s frustrating to work so hard on your garden only for it to be ruined by weeds. Let’s discuss how to stop grass and weeds from growing.

Reasons why should stop grass and weed from growing.

Weeds can be invasive and complex to get rid of because they grow much faster than cultivated plants. This means that they’ll take over your garden and kill off the plants with no time.

They also produce many seeds that can spread to other areas, making it even more challenging to control them. If you let them by their own devices, they’ll simply overrun your garden. And that’s something you don’t want because once they take over, it’s tough to come back from that. 

Weeds can harm you.

There are poisonous weeds that cause severe damage to human beings if consumed. Just imagine how much it’d cost you if one of your family members accidentally ate these plants.

Grass and weed are challenging to stop growing because some have developed physical and chemical resistance to common herbicides. This means that there are now weeds out there that can survive a weed killer spray and simply keep growing.

However, you can fight back. Here’s how:

How to Stop Grass and Weeds from Growing

1. Mulching to smother weeds

Mulching is one of the natural ways to stop grass and weed from growing. It works like a charm on weeds with shallow roots because it kills them off.

All you have to do is cover them in mulch. This will block sunlight from reaching the weeds, thus preventing them from producing energy through photosynthesis. Without this sunlight, they cannot grow back or germinate. 

Here is the best. Over time, the mulch will start to decompose and fertilize your garden soil with worm castings, making it healthier for your plants. You win twice. 

Mulching also prevents the weed from coming into contact with the soil, hence, they cannot grow. 

2. Using a weedkiller

Another great way to stop grass and weed from growing is to use chemical weed killers. Weedkillers are strong enough to destroy the roots of the weed, preventing them from germinating back.

Note that you should only use this technique if you’ve prepared your garden soil beforehand. You should also wear protective gear while handling chemicals because they can be harmful to human beings if consumed or inhaled.

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3. Weed consistently

Another excellent way to stop weeds from growing is through consistent weeding. Yes, it sounds like a lot of work, but it’s worth your time. The more you weed, the fewer weeds you’ll have to deal with in the future.

You can do this activity weekly or daily. Just make sure that at least one person in the house is doing this routine regularly. If not, weeds will simply continue growing.

My neighbors weeds are out of control

4. Grow plants closely

Another trick you can use to stop grass and weed from growing is to plant many plants with really close spacing. 

This will discourage the weeds from growing because they won’t have any open spaces for their leaves to reach sunlight. With no sunlight, weed can’t produce energy, so it’ll eventually die off fast.

See also: How do you kill grass around fence line naturally?

5. Proper Watering and fertilizer application

Another great way to stop grass and weeds from growing is through proper watering and fertilization. 

The worst thing you can do is to water your plants unevenly or let them wither without water for too long.

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This will cause weeds to grow faster because they are competing conditions as cultivated plants. 

Take your time to water each plant precisely so that each plant gets enough water and there is no water spillage on open spaces for weeds to grow. 

Applying fertilizer at the base of each plant will also deprive weeds in open places of the nutrients to grow. 

The more you take care of your plants, the faster weed will be dead.

Grass and weeds can quickly overrun your garden if left unattended. If you let them grow, they’ll only get stronger from your neglect.

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6. Consistent Mowing

Mowing is another excellent way to stop grass and weed from growing. Make it a routine to mow your lawn regularly so that weeds don’t have time to grow back. 

A lawnmower with sharp blades will be enough to cut these plants at their roots, killing them. Mowing helps you maintain a healthy lawn, which is an excellent way to stop weeds from growing.

7. Use pre-emergence herbicides

Pre-emergence herbicides like Corn Gluten Meal are excellent for killing off weeds that have germinated but not yet emerged.

Espoma Weed Preventer Plus Lawn Food

Just spread it over the area you want to weed and water them afterward. This will prevent new weeds from growing back for up to three months.

This is an excellent way to stop grass and weed from growing. It’s also particularly effective in eliminating dandelions, crabgrass, chickweed, plantain, etc. 

FAQ

The methods discussed above are fantastic techniques to apply if you’re wondering how to stop grass and weeds from growing in your garden. 

Weeds are a menace. They are always trying to take over the lawn. If you follow all these steps regularly, then it’s significantly less likely that weeds will grow. 

Here’s a recap: water and fertilize each plant precisely, mulch to smother weeds, use pre-emergence herbicides and weed killer, mow and weed consistently and grow plants closely.