The Weeding Mistake That Is Causing Harm To Your Flower Beds

Weeding flower beds can be pretty satisfying, especially if you enjoy gardening. Many even wait all year long for the best time to pull weeds, only to make one mistake: Leaving weeds scattered on top of the soil in the beds. Many common perennial weeds reproduce vegetatively, so if you just leave them on the ground after a quick weed removal job, they will sprout back within a matter of a days. 

Seed-bearing annual weeds pose another sneaky threat. Some of the weeds you've pulled out will harbor seeds and these can easily germinate when left on the ground, or the seeds may just linger in the soil until the conditions for sprouting are perfect. In addition, animal or human activity, such as walking through the garden, and environmental disturbances like excessive winds, could even amplify the problem, by spreading the seeds over a wider garden area.  

Now, it might seem like there's a simple fix; pull the weeds out again — problem solved. However, re-emerging weeds can compete for nutrients with other plants, invade flower beds, carry pathogens, and stop you from creating the garden of your dreams.

Beyond regrowth, the weeds left behind in flower beds create many ecological and horticultural problems. If poorly removed, weeds will attract insects and other pests to your garden beds. Some of them may even act as vectors for plant diseases and viruses, which could put your entire garden at risk. The issue could become even more concerning under humid conditions, as high humidity and decaying organic matter provide perfect growing conditions for fungi. 

Likewise, the physical clutter from discarded weeds can block airflow and stop the light from reaching the soil and lower foliage of your desirable plants. This could result in poor growth due to reduced photosynthesis, especially in newly growing flowers. And, the problems don't just end here. Invasive weeds in flower beds drain the soil of nutrients. Over time, it can limit the availability of nitrogen and other minerals to flowers, compromising growth and aesthetic quality. To fix this, you'll need to spend quite a bit of time and money to replenish the nutrients that your plants may be missing.

Whenever you pull weeds from your flower beds, make sure you take everything and leave nothing behind. It's also a good idea not to add weeds, especially invasive and seed-bearing ones, to your compost. Many weed seeds can easily survive backyard composting because it simply won't get hot enough to kill them. Over time, this could undermine your whole flower garden restoration efforts, as you put that compost (and the weed seeds it contains) onto your beds. You should also try to avoid pulling weeds from dry soil, as this could result in some of the roots being left behind, meaning those pesky weeds will just regrow.

As a preventative measure, you can try mulching around your flowers to stop weeds from coming back. This prevents them from growing by blocking sunlight, and any seeds that do manage to grow back through the mulch are very easy to remove by hand. Pairing smart strategies for removing weeds with preventive measures, is the best thing you can do to create a space that your flowers deserve.