9 Seriously Helpful Weeding Hacks That Everyone Should Know

Weeding Hacks - collage: woman using a kneeling pad; clipping a plant; newspaper in garden; woman cutting the grass

I Hate Weeding, So I Found Hacks That Make Weeding Easier

Removing weeds is a crucial part of maintaining a healthy yard or garden, but that doesn’t necessarily make it enjoyable work. But the easy weeding hacks I’ve got for you in today’s post will help make the process less onerous!

While it does take a lot of time and effort to maintain my yard and garden, seeing my yard full of beautiful, thriving plants makes it all worth it. But as I said, certain aspects of yard work are just no fun, and weeding is certainly one of them!

That’s why I’m sharing 9 ways to make weeding easier in today’s post — they are sure to save you plenty of time and effort, and will hopefully help you dread this chore a little bit less! :-)

Related: This Natural Homemade Weed Killer Is The Cheapest & Easiest Way To Kill Weeds Fast

9 Easy Weeding Hacks That Will Save You Time And Effort

Weeding Hacks - woman on a kneeling pad spraying vinegar on a week in a driveway

1. Make Your Own Weed Killer

You don’t have to spend money on store-bought herbicides to kill weeds—just mix up a batch of my super simple weed killing spray! To make it, you only need two ingredients that you probably already have at home: dish soap and white vinegar. Get all the details for making and using this DIY weed killer.

Easy Weeding Hacks - using a DIY spray collar

2. Make A DIY Spray Collar

While weed sprays are easy enough to use, it can be tricky to avoid spraying the surrounding grass or plants by accident. But you can eliminate overspray by making yourself a simple spray collar.

Just take an old can, small bucket, or small trash can and cut off the bottom and/or top so that both ends are open. Place the collar over the weed you want to target, then spray it—the collar will catch any overspray and protect your grass and plants!

Easy Weeding Hacks - using newspaper t control weeds

3. Use Newspaper To Control Weeds

Want to reduce the amount of weeds springing up around your plants and flowers? When you’re planting (or transplanting) them, take a few extra minutes to build in some “newspaper lasagna.” This process involves layering newspaper into the soil to form a weed-suppressing barrier that won’t prevent moisture from reaching your plant’s roots.

Learn more about the benefits of newspaper lasagna and how to use it.

Easy Weeding Hacks - mulching around flowers

4. Don’t Forget To Mulch

When it comes to controlling weed growth in flower and garden beds, it’s hard to beat the benefits of mulch. Adding an even layer of 2-3 inches of organic mulch like bark, wood chips, or even grass clippings over your flower or garden beds will keep the ground moist and cool while blocking light that helps seeds germinate and grow.

Easy Weeding Hacks - pulling a weed roots and all

5. Remove The Roots

When weeding deep-rooted weeds, you want to make sure you remove as much of the roots as possible to prevent it from growing back. Grasp the weed as close to the base as possible, then pull. You should get most of the root this way (as long as the soil isn’t particularly hard).

Easy Weeding Hacks - snipping the top off a weed so it won't flower

6. Off With Their Heads

If you just can’t get the root of a weed to come out, don’t stress about it. Just make sure to chop off their heads to reduce the possibility of reseeding, and to help limit the spread of the weed.

Easy Weeding Hacks - letting rain soften the soil before weeding

7. Weed After It Rains

You’ll have an easier time weeding if you work when the ground is wet, because wet soil is more flexible and is much more likely to allow you to pull weeds out with the root intact. (It may be muddier than the alternative, but it’s worth the extra mess!)

You can wait until after it rains, or you can prime the area yourself by watering thoroughly before you get started.

Easy Weeding Hacks - woman cutting the grass

8. Keep Your Grass Longer

Cutting your grass too short can make it more likely that weeds will take root and thrive in your yard. Instead, keep the height of your grass a bit longer, between 2-3 inches high. Longer, healthier grass will help choke out weeds naturally, without any added work on your part!

Related: 7 Unexpected Things That Are Killing Your Lawn

Easy Weeding Hacks - hand scrub and watering can for washing up after weeding

9. Wash Up After Weeding

Weeding can be dirty work, so it’s a good idea to have a good hand scrub on deck! My all-time favorite hand scrub is my homemade Gardener’s Hand Scrub.

It gently scrubs away dirt and grime from your hands, fingers, and nails, and leaves skin feeling soft and clean. Mix up a jar for yourself, and make a couple of extras to give away as gifts! :-)

Find more great gardening tips in the Gardening & Outdoors section of my website!

Do you have any weeding hacks you’d add to this list?

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Jill Nystul (aka Jillee)

Jill Nystul is an accomplished writer and author who founded the blog One Good Thing by Jillee in 2011. With over 30 years of experience in homemaking, she has become a trusted resource for contemporary homemakers by offering practical solutions to everyday household challenges.I share creative homemaking and lifestyle solutions that make your life easier and more enjoyable!

About Jillee

Jill Nystul

Jill’s 30 years of homemaking experience, make her the trusted source for practical household solutions.

About Jillee

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27 Comments

  1. I use snub nose pliers (needle nose that aren’t so needle like) to pull weeds. I can get a better grasp toward the bottom of the weed and it isn’t so hard on my old hands. I’ve used needle nose too as long as they are large enough to get a good grip.

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  2. #7 is a great tip ,for small areas. But If your weeding a large area, ( like a big veggie garden) don’t walk on wet ground, to weed. The wet ground will pack down and make the dirt, rock hard!

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  3. I I wear gloves. Some of those weeds have stickers. Gloves protect your fingers and keeps your hands clean!

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    • I can’t wear gloves, I’ve tried many times. But I do use Jillee’ s homemade scrub, to get my hands clean and soft, after I work outside.

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  4. An other good way to get clean nails after gardening is to save soap bars or larger slivers anddig your fingernails over soap. When you wash your hands after gardening, the fingernails are clean.

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    • I’ve tried this one ,too! But I can’t stand the feeling of the soap under my nails like that. I kinda wish I could, seems so much easier, than scrubbing with the nail brush!

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  5. Mowing your lawn higher might be a good idea, but it can also be a bad one. It gives weeds longer to get established before your mower trims their tops off. So which would be best might depend on the type of grass and the type of weed you have.

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  6. We use the vinegar and dish soap but with salt..I’ll have to try without. We use fabric under everything we mulch but the best tip i have is baking soda. I use it on my pavers to keep the weeds from growing inbetween and along the edges of the flower beds to keep the grass from creeping in. Sprinkle before you know there will be a good rain – I use an old parmesan cheese container. It changes the soil ph which is why it works so use with care!

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    • I’ve never heard of the baking soda one! Ill have to remember that one. ( I dont have sidewalks, or driveway cracks, but do have friends and family, that its a problem for)I’ve used pretty much every homemade solution, I could find, over the years. But around here, the vinegar, salt, dish soap mix, seems to work the best!

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  7. We found a great solution for weeds in our vegetable garden. After the area is tilled and ready to plant, we spread a tarp over it. We pound spikes into the ground through the grommets on the tarp. We cut areas in it to put the seeds or plants. The few weeds that come up through the holes are manageable. Plus, the tarp tends to keep the ground moister, so we less watering to do!

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  8. Take a dollar store condiment bottle, mix up your weed killer of choice (mine is vinegar, Epsom salts and dawn dishes soap) and squirt it as close to the roots as you can. I find the spray makes it less effective. Remember to label it. And another tip is when you see lots of ants, grab another handy dandy condiment bottle, fill is with Dawn and use it like caulking in seams. We take that with us every vacation….

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  9. Learn those weeds some are eatable so let them grow to get big enough to pay to put in a pot for epgreens

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    • Presuming you have NOT sprayed weed killer anywhere – like Roundup – Brrrrr… An some of those weeds are incredibly useful herbs – like chickweed, plantain, etc.

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  10. After weeding, sprinkle plain corn gluten (NOT the commercial stuff that contains herbicide) to retard weed regrowth.

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  11. I love the weed one. A lady years ago said she sprinkled a big container of table salt. It didn’t do a thing for our weeds. I like the vinegar and dish soap solution. I just have to convince my Dad to try it. Instead of spending lots of money on weed killers.

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    • I use plain vinegar straight out of the bottle, especially in the sidewalk cracks and driveway.

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    • I’m sure the lady is long gone. She was old when used to come to my work.

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    • Table salt on the weeds in the cracks of our concrete driveway and sidewalks works perfectly. It takes weeds almost 2 weeks for them to die, but is good for a couple months.

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  12. I use my ShopVac hose without the sweeper head , put it over the weed, suck it out. No bending , no kneeling, bring dirt to compost pile.

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  13. Dig your fingernails into a bar of soap before gardening – easier to clean when done. Use a square of cardboard to protect your knees when leaning over to pull weeds; easily discarded and replaced. Use a bucket of some kind to collect the weeds so you don’t have to stop and make so many trips to the city’s collection bag or your compost pile.

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  14. Wear gardening gloves while you are weeding/ gardening to prevent getting your hands dirty and to prevent splinters. Also, in case you touch something you might be allergic to or if you have any open cuts or sores on your hands, especially small ones! I love gardening but I don’t like to have to scrub my hands and nails raw due to not gloving up!

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  15. We had a weed growing in our azalea bush. I successfully killed the vine by implementing a method I heard on a radio show. Take one of the tube vials that florists put individual roses in to keep them alive longer, but put the weed killer in it rather than water. Shorten the vine to a length that can let it drink the concoction while the tube sits upright. Takes the poison right to the root. Voila!!!

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  16. Jillee, you have such helpful advice. Thank you. And your boxer is adorable!

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