Pulling Weeds Is So Much Easier With The Help Of One Everyday Kitchen Essential

After mowing the lawn, planting a garden, and choosing the best shrubs for your landscape, the last thing you want to see is weeds. The pesky plants can ruin the aesthetics of your outdoor space, as they grow in undesirable areas. Even worse, weeds can compete with your own plants for water and sunlight, potentially becoming invasive. That's why it's so important to regularly practice safe and natural weed control in the garden and lawn.

Though you can pull out weeds from the ground (with gloved hands, of course), there are many gardening tools that can expedite the process. Learning how to use a hand weeder, for example, is a great first step to manually tackling weeds. But if you need a more precise tool for small unwanted plants, try using an ordinary kitchen fork. Thanks to its handheld size and thin prongs, a fork can seamlessly dig out a weed's entire root system without damaging nearby plants.

For this approach, you'll need a standard kitchen fork and a pair of gardening gloves. If you can spare a fork from your own kitchen, consider adding it to your gardening toolbox. Just be sure to designate this fork for weeding only, and avoid returning it to your kitchen drawer. You can also find inexpensive forks at the thrift store. Next, scrape the fork between your plants to dislodge tiny weeds. For weeds that are slightly bigger but still quite small, shove the tines into the soil, making sure to place the fork at the bottom of the weed. This will ensure the tines can properly grab the roots. Apply some force until you can no longer push the fork, then lift it up. This motion will remove the plant and roots from the soil, which may be difficult to do if you're just using your hands.

Worth mentioning, this hack is best for pulling out smaller weeds when they haven't established a strong root system. But take note: This kitchen fork method is best for overall maintenance, rather than tackling full-grown weeds. If your yard is overrun with weeds or you need to kill weeds permanently in a large area, you may need help from lawn care professionals or a landscaping company.

When removing weeds with a fork (or any tool, for that matter), there are things you can do to support the process. After you've inserted the fork at the base of a weed, carefully move it from side to side. The wiggling motion will help coax the roots out of the soil. As you pull out the weed, do it slowly to ensure its fully lifted out and nearby plants are left intact. It's the best way to get rid of weeds in the garden without killing other plants.

Try to pull weeds after it rains, as they're easier to get out when the soil is moist. You can also briefly water the ground, if needed. Additionally, start to remove weeds in early spring or summer, when the weeds are still young and small. From there, it's recommended to weed every other day. This can be done any time of the day, though it may be more comfortable in the early morning or evening when it's cooler.