Weed Your Garden The Easy Way

by Jared Neibaur

I'll be the first to admit that the number one thing that kills the gardening spirit is weeding. And the sad fact is, weeds will never go away. We can reduce their numbers on our side of the fence, we can even bring in weed free compost to make raised beds, but more seed will blow over year after year. Before you give up all hope and turn your garden into a patio I want to present you with an  old timer trick that makes weeding the garden easy. 

 Growing your own food takes a certain amount of time commitment. Understanding this from the beginning can save a lot of undue heartache, and turn a chore into a joy. The trick is to break the work down into manageable tasks and then to perform them diligently. This is one of the things that I love about simple living, you build a barn one board at a time and at the end of the day you have created something great. Simple living like this is truly finding joy in the journey. 

Now how does this all apply to weeding the garden? Well, I'm here to tell you that with a rake and 5-15 min a day you can keep the weeds under control in your garden. And as long as you are willing to do some spot pulling or hoeing, where the rake won't go, you can easily keep your garden weed free. 

I have two pictures below that explain the method. Basicly, you lightly pull and push your rake over the loose soil, around your plants or rows, to break up the surface. Now take a close look at the dirt that I am working in these pictures. Other than the grass on the right side, the soil already looks weed free. This is the right time to do it! The weeds are really there. I try to rake across my garden once a week. I start on one side and rake for a few minutes taking one section a day. 

You will see, if you look closely, that the weeds are really there. In my garden there are hundreds per square foot. I took a closeup picture to illustrate. It is really staggering to see all the little roots that come to the surface when you rake.

When you rake, you are turning up all these little seedling weeds and with very little effort you can weed a large garden in very little time. And the best part about it is that each day, as you take the time to tend and nurture the land, you will receive the healing and nurture that only comes from simple living. You won't just be weeding a garden, you will be living and discovering life. 

Now some technical hints. There are a few vegetables like radishes and beets that you can rake right over the top of for about a one week span of time, but a good rule of thumb is to avoid what you plant. Design your planting and your rows in a way that you can rake around your plants or along the rows. Then, after you rake, a couple minutes with a hoe or a hand will finish what is left. It is also good to watch your moisture in the soil and rake when the moisture is just right. My sandy soil rakes the best when it is a little moist but mostly dry. Finally, weeds seem to be tenacious, you will probably find that a few weeds across the garden will survive the raking for a week or two. This is just a part of that' "discovering the meaning of life" that I was talking about before. It is the perfect time to smile and think, I'm sure you will know what to do.

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