Jason E. Andersen

Spring means weeding your garden is right around the corner. Of course, you are a good conservationist and do all your gardening with native plants (right?). Great job! This week’s fun fact comes from my wife, which I learned from a virtual talk she delivered over the weekend.

Bonus Fun Fact: You should cut, not pull, the annual weeds in your garden. I admit, it is very satisfying to put a strangle hold on a marestail or buttonweed plant and give it a good pull. The feeling of the root ball busting loose of the soil is something like a direct line of dopamine into your system. But therein lies the problem! When you pull a weed loose, it disturbs the soil, exposing further seeds that can then germinate. It’s an endless feedback loop of weeds! Instead, cut those weeds at the base of the stem. This will kill the plant and keep the soil structure intact, making weed control ultimately easier.

You probably figured it out already, but this doesn’t work on perennial weeds. No, the weeds that come back year after year will only get annoyed by your cutting. You’ll have to dig them up. But hey, work smarter, not harder!