Weeds: More Friend Than Foe

By Rachel Budd

There are three things in life that are certain; death, taxes, and weeds. No matter what the weather is like, no matter how hard our seedlings find it to battle through changing temperatures, wind, rain and in some cases snow, weeds will always survive and thrive. As spring turns into summer, by the calendar at least if not by temperature, we will start our annual battle against weeds.

For most people, this is a chore they could do without and even the most hardened gardener can despair at the tenacity of some of our common weeds.

There are ways to approach weeds though that can help us get through it.

Ask yourself if this plant is really a problem where it is. It’s obviously happy and thriving, do we really need to disturb it? Many of our weeds — or wild-flowers to give them their proper title — are also some of our best pollinator plants, and have evolved in symbiosis with our insect, bird, and animal life to create ecosystems where all survive.

We can’t leave weeds everywhere though; they will out compete our vegetable plants and our flowers if not checked. Sometimes a thick renewable mulch will do the trick. Not plastic, and not woven weed barriers however, as these starve the soil and leave it deficient in nutrients and essential soil life. Cardboard and bark mulch are a create combination as they work together to suppress weeds, slowly rotting down to feed the soil and encourage a healthy worm population. They need replacing at least twice a year to keep suppressing weeds.

If you need to remove weeds, do a really thorough job twice a year. A good spring clean-up will go a long way into the summer and an autumn tidy up of the beds will reduce the amount of weeds coming back the following spring.

Remember to put your weeds on a compost heap, let them rot down and add them back to the soil next season to feed your plants. In a good garden, nothing is wasted.

But whatever you do – DO NOT SPRAY YOUR WEEDS! I am shouting this because it is really important. Weed killers are devastating soil life. They are killing pollinators and other insects.

We encourage all communities and households to avoid using such sprays. Communities can erect signage in green areas explaining that these areas are supporting pollination.

This year, it has been great to see such uptake by our communities in our community planting project. We have seen young and old get involved with local schools even taking part in the planting process. This LEADER funded biodiversity project has supported communities across the region to develop an individualised biodiversity plan and purchase a variety of bare root trees, wild-flowers, perennials etc. This project is ongoing all year and for any communities who have yet to take up on this offer there is still time to get involved.